Unsuspected
by Marie Darkholme
Summary: Her best friend is getting married. The love of her life is getting married. Once again, everything seems to slip away from her. One request that he allows her to fullfil because everything will change. Taiora Sora moves to New York after Taichi's marriag
1. Little Things

_So, I'm back with a new story. This will be a short fic, I think. I'll try to make short chapters with no more than five pages._

_Anyway, enjoy it and then tell me something about it._

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**Unsuspected**

By

Marie Darkholme

**Chapter One **– Little things…

The night was clear. But of course it should be. After all, it was early August and the night skies would always be filled with uncountable stars to bright everyone's way. But that night, there was also a bright quarter moon.

Voices filled the air. Voices muffed with the drip of alcohol and amusement. Manly voices that echoed through the clear streets.

"Keep down, you guys…" one of the voices said. "I don't want to hear the neighbours complaining about the noise tomorrow morning."

"You'll be lucky if they only complain tomorrow morning." Another voice replied to the first. This one belonged to a wise young man with brown-red hair. His otherwise pale features were covered with a soft shade of red, and his loud voice indicated he had had a few more drinks than he should have.

"Shut up, Koushiro…" another different voice said harshly. "You're ruining all the fun with your theories. Not even when you're fucking drunk you have the decency to have fun."

The others shrugged.

"And you are as bad humoured as when you're sober." The first one said. He had dark brown hair and a matching pair of brown eyes. His name was Taichi and his bad tempered friend was Yamato.

The three boys were walking to Taichi's apartment after a very well spent night at a nearby bar. It was early in the morning and the night would soon give space to the day again. They reached a complex of apartments with no more than ten floors each. Taichi lived in the last floor. He had a duplex that he shared with his sister. Conveniently, she was in her own party with Taichi's fiancée.

"Are you sure you don't want to hit another club?" Yamato asked with a hint of disappointment in his face. "After all, this is that last night you're going to be single." He stated. Taichi nodded in agreement.

"Technically, he can still become single again. He can get the divorce." Koushiro said and a hiccup escaped his mouth, leaving an alcohol breath around him. The other two eyed him.

"You're definitely drunk." The brown haired concluded and took his keychain. "I'm going to bed, right now. In case you don't remember, I still have to go through all the preps again tomorrow morning." He remembered his bad-humoured friend. Yamato shrunk his shoulders and prepared to walk away.

"Are you coming, Koushiro?"

"Yeah, sure. I don't have to wake up tomorrow morning." Koushiro replied and stumped after Yamato.

Taichi watched for a while as his two friends walked away, or more like stumped away, since they weren't really walking in a line. Then, he clicked the opening code into the doors panel and entered the building. He watched his face in the mirror. His eyes had big black holes underneath them and even his tanned skin showed marks of intoxication. Still, not enough to make him stump or say stupid things like Koushiro. He smiled. He had always had a good alcohol tolerance. It was hard to get him really drunk.

He didn't bother turning the lights of the darkened corridor on. The light that entered through a small window was enough for him to see his door lock. He slowly turned the key and the wooden reinforced door opened. He was surprised to see a shadow inside his house, but his face relaxed as he recognized his long time friend. He took his time to close the door and threw himself on the couch.

"Weren't you supposed to be in a party?" he asked her. Her auburn hair was messed up and she had a careless aspect. Nevertheless when she spoke, he noticed she wasn't drunk like he had first thought.

"Our party is long over." She replied. The hint on her voice and his many years of experience told him she wasn't feeling like to talk.

While he lay on the couch, she remained standing near the window of his living-room. The curtains were closed and there was little light in the room.

"So…what are you doing here?" he asked. "It's …like half past four in the morning…" he said, checking the hours on his clock. He yawned and the when he reopened his eyes, he stared right into her crimson eyes. There was a strange shine on them. She whispered into his ear.

"Please…" she said. He pushed her away surprised.

"Sora, I'm not completely drunk, if that's what you think." He replied. His voice intended to sound harsh, but it didn't. Instead it came out as a soft disbelief.

"I know that. I wouldn't ask something like that if you were drunk." She replied. For moments she thought she had completely lost him, but instead she could see a glimpse of hope.

"But Sora…"

"I know…" she interrupted him. "I know Taichi…but just this once, before everything…changes…?" her eyes pleaded to him. She came near. Something told her he wasn't going to push her away this time. Her hands ended over his chest. She leaned her head over him and he couldn't help but enveloping her fragile form on his arms.

"Okay." He whispered to her and covered her lips with his. It was a tender kiss, like the one you share with a very close friend. He took her in his arms and transported her to his room where he laid her on his bed. Their lips sealed the tender moment. She cried inwardly.

When Taichi awoke the next morning, he couldn't feel her warm embrace by his side. He slipped from bed and quickly put on his boxers. The curtains in the window were closed and he opened them with a soft movement. The auburn's perfume still penetrated deep within his nostrils, eve though she was gone. Her clothes were no longer sprawled along the floor and she had picked and bent his over a chair.

The brown haired made a remake of that morning's events. If someone would ever found out what they had done he would be in deep troubles. But more than someone founding out about it, it troubled him the fact that he had done it. At first he had been a little taken back, but the fact was he couldn't refuse her request. And after the first kiss, he simply allowed himself to be driven by the moment.

When he entered the kitchen he came across a splendid breakfast over the table and a note. He read it quietly, a hint of sadness on his eyes as he remembered his best friend. The warm pancakes with chocolate spread in small pieces over them told him she hadn't left a long time ago. Unintentionally he took a deep breath, taking in the soft scent of roses that her presence always left in the air.

The rest of day went peacefully with all the last preparations for the great ceremony. It was going to be a traditional wedding, not many people, just the closest friends and family. Everything seemed to be going great. The local for the ceremony had been beautifully decorated. The restaurant which was going to serve them had already ordered everything. His clothes were over his chair. The honeymoon was confirmed with flights planned and hotels reserved.

When he finally went to bed that night, Taichi found himself strangely nervous. The kind of feeling that precedes an important decision in his life. When the last sense of reality hit before his mind travelled to sleep, her soft scent of roses was still in the air.

Everyone was well dressed and with a happy face. Everyone clapped and congratulated them as they entered the car. Taichi had even gotten a driver to take them to the airport. Everyone waved them goodbye. His mother kissed him like he was her little baby while the tears of happiness escaped her eyes. His sister smiled mischievously at him, holding the arm of her latest boyfriend. Yamato and Koushiro whispered things in his ears while the blond handed him a book with a strange layer.

Sakura, his fiancée received kisses, hugs and the last advises from the women. Mimi, one of his long time friends, with her long brown hair with light threads of pink in her flashy dress hugged the girl tightly and kissed her in the cheek, smiling brightly and forcefully. From between the confusion he saw Sora. His friend gave him a huge smile. He watched as she too took Sakura into the warm embrace. Sakura shook her head to something while she smiled blankly, making her beautiful black hair float around her.

"Don't forget to read this before the big night, buddy." Yamato told him between the various voices. This brought the brown haired back to his friends. He smiled, tightening the grip over the strange book. He would later realise it was the so well known book of sexual positions. Another joke from Yamato with a small note saying to have fun.

Before he could answer Koushiro's questions as to where the mysterious honeymoon would be, he found himself face to face with his best friend. Sora had a smile on her face. They eyed each other and for a split second, Taichi felt uncomfortable, thinking about the day before. Then he felt the sweet scent of roses again. Sora embraced him and kissed his cheek.

"Goodbye…"

A soft wind blew and he felt Sakura's hand lying on top of his shoulder. She pulled his face to her and kissed his lips. Some of their friends whistled loudly to their exhibition of passion. When Taichi opened his eyes again, Sora was nowhere to be seen. Sakura entered the car and he followed her. More whistles and claps followed them until they couldn't hear them anymore.

The events seemed like a distant dream. One of those dreams that we seem to be forgetting, even though it was pleasant. Events crossed his eyes, but it wasn't as if he was really there, living them. It was more like reading a book.

"Kiss me." Sakura pulled him to the suite they had reserved in the hotel, somewhere in the beautiful city of Vienna. "Kiss me." Her words reaching slowly like a bad romance movie where the actors say the same thing over and over.

He leaned her quietly over the bed. "Kiss me." Her hands grasped his face and their lips collided together.

Taichi didn't read Yamato's book. He didn't even take a look at him. It lied under a pile of clothes. He didn't need instructions on how to deal with Sakura. They had their own ritual, like everyone else.


	2. Across the Ocean

**Unsuspected**

By

Marie Darkholme

**Chapter Two **– Across the ocean…

Two weeks later, Taichi's and Sakura's time for enjoying the pleasures of several European cities was over. After Vienna, Berlin, Plaque, Paris, Madrid and Lisbon, it was time to return to Tokyo. The trip from the beautiful Portuguese city of Lisbon was long and tiring. They arrived at Taichi's apartment exhausted. Hikari, his sister, helped them with their bags into the room. Apparently her boyfriend was not around. Taichi didn't bother asking the reason. The most probable reason was things were over between them.

After a nice and fast dinner with familiar homemade food on the plate, Sakura left to their room. They didn't unpack until the next day. The dim light that entered through the window landed over Taichi's eyes making him awake. He slowly turned to the woman besides him and smiled, taking a hair from her face. Her eyes opened slowly, showing their unnatural green colour. He kissed her before standing and leaving the room.

Hikari had left him a note saying she was going to meet Takeru, a long time friend, Yamato's brother. Now he was sure she had broken up with her latest boyfriend. Sighing inwardly, he started making breakfast, but then ended up by making lunch since it was late in the morning.

Sakura entered the room minutes before lunch was ready.

"Morning sleepy head." He called to her. She yawned visibly sleepy still and sat on a chair. Taichi put a plate on the table in front of her and than sat as well and started eating. They exchanged little words. After lunch Sakura helped him with the dishes into the washing machine.

"I've got to get to work, so you'll have to unpack alone, alright?" he smiled as he kissed her forehead. Sakura puppy eyed him.

"Do you really have to?" she asked. Taichi smiled and put his hands over her waist.

"Yes, I really have to." He replied.

The day was shinny and while he drove to work, Taichi couldn't help smiling. Even knowing he was leaving Sakura behind, he couldn't help feeling happy for being back to work. As much as he wouldn't like to admit, but he truly liked his job. He wasn't an important politician, like he had once dreamed. Nevertheless, he had an important task in international relationships between the various countries of the world and Japan. Right now, he was trying to smooth their relationship with China which was going stiffly lately.

Days passed until he had contact with his two friends again. Now that they were adults and all had their own jobs, it was more difficult to keep in touch. Koushiro was a computer technician at Sony. He was entrusted with the search for errors in programs designed by the company. Yamato, on the other hand run a music shop along with a partner and taught guitar and other strings instruments.

They planned to meet on that Friday at a bar. Sakura stayed at home. It was a men's night out.

"How was the honeymoon? Did you try out my book?" Yamato asked as he swallowed down a cup of whisky, realising a satisfied moan. Koushiro chewed on the straw of his coke. After the bad experience he had had while drinking with Yamato, he decided to take it easy with the drinks. On his hand, Taichi made small circles in the air with his half empty beer. He smirked.

"Like I need something like that. It looks more like your style." He replied, making Yamato spill some of his new cup of whisky.

"A guy never knows everything." he grinned. At the same time, he spotted a girl looking at him. He blinked an eye at her and the girl quickly turned her look away and Yamato turned back to his drink with a smirk playing on his lips. Seconds later the girl was looking at him again.

"Well, you sure had more fun than me, travelling through Europe. Fun every night, huh?" he continued. Koushiro remained silent, chewing his straw. "I thought that maybe Mimi would stay a little longer and we could…you know…get together again, for old times sake…"he smirked "…but the day after you left, she packed her things and left. She and Sora. When I went there the next morning, the apartment was completely empty and for sale."

Taichi put down his beer and looked at his blond friend. Yamato took another long sip of his drink as he continued to meditate over Mimi's departure.

"Sora sold her apartment?" he asked surprised. Yamato watched him also surprise.

"You didn't know! I thought she would have told you, since you're best friends and all." he launched him a confused look. "I received a letter from her some days ago. Looks like Mimi's agency was looking for a stylist and they accept her there. So she moved in to New York with Mimi."

Mimi's house was pretty big. Sora was amazed with New York. It was indeed a busy town. It took them almost two hours to get from the airport to Mimi's house, right in the heart of the city. The girl had a duplex in one a high building. Only Mimi lived there and of course, now Sora did too. The three rooms were more than enough for them. The kitchen was spacious and the living room had a glass wall. Sora's room was decorated similarly to her own room in her small apartment in Japan. A large bed in the middle of the room, a big desk under the window and Mimi had even put some blue painting in the walls.

It was easy to get adjusted to her new life in New York. The agency was spectacular. They loved Sora's ideas and in less than a month she had already had a model's passage, being Mimi her main model. The brown haired girl seemed to fit perfectly into every piece of clothing that the auburn one would draw.

The language was an easy adaptation since Sora was used to speak in English at her old job, and with Mimi as guide and partner, she couldn't have more fun. While in one hand her new job occupied most of her thoughts, her free time was carefully scheduled by her friend. She had always something planned, whether it was a visit to the mall in order to enhance her already large wardrobe or a night out to a bar or the disco.

Even though all this new things entering in her life made her happy, when the night came and she was alone in her room, her mind travelled back to Japan, where her best friend would be spending his time with another woman. She hadn't written to him or sent an e-mail or even phoned, but she was sure he already knew of her trip. She had been afraid of telling him; afraid that that would make more difficult her departure. She would never now if it would have, but it cost her enough to leave without his knowledge.

In those nights, when those thoughts haunted her, she would remind herself of that night when he had joined with her. Sometimes it made her sadder while other times it made her smile, remembering the taste of his lips over hers, the touch of his skin on her hands or his soft scent to water cologne, one that she had offered him by his eighteenth birthday and that he only used in special occasions…like his wedding.

She turned around and once again closed her eyes. It would be a month the next day that she had left Japan. She could hear Mimi in the living room chatting on the phone with some of her friends, telling them about how another guy had tried to take a step forward with her and how she had, so greatly, discharged him with two words. Sora listened to the conversation and few minutes later she was asleep.

"Oh no!" Mimi's voice echoed through the house coming from the lower floor. Sora slowly opened her eyes, only to hear another sound of unhappiness. "It's completely ruined."

The auburn haired swung her feet off the bed and quickly sat on the bed. A sudden nauseous invaded her. Her hand flew to her mouth but as suddenly as the feeling appeared, it also disappeared. Putting on her fluffy lion headed slippers, she slowly walked downstairs to find her friend sobbing over a piece of clothing.

"What's going on Meems?" she asked the girl. Mimi eyed her, her eyes puffy and red, and exhibited the piece of clothing she was holding in her hands. The short, thigh pink dress, one of Mimi's favourite had now blue dots in the chest and back.

"Did you put it in with that blue blouse you have?" Sora asked knowingly. The girl nodded. Sora slapped her forehead as a sigh escaped her lips. "I told you when you bought it that it would stain if you washed it with other clothes."

Mimi nodded apologetically, her eyes imploring the auburn haired to do something.

"The only solution is staining the entire dress in blue." She replied after a small thinking. Mimi looked scandalized to the dress and then to Sora again, but the auburn haired was no longer there. Mimi walked to the bathroom from where she detected strange sounds.

The auburn haired flushed down the toilette and washed her mouth.

"Are you feeling alright?" Mimi asked concerned. Sora smiled as she shook her hand.

"Must have been those drinks and the ice-cream we had last night." She replied promptly. Mimi raised an eyebrow.

"But you didn't have that much to make you sick. Last week, we ate like the double and you were fine."

"Well, maybe this time they didn't fall so right into my stomach." She tried to ease her friend. "C'mon, don't worry about it. Do you want me to stain the dress or not?" she asked, wiping her mouth to a towel. Mimi walked back to the living room, Sora following her. She looked at the dress.

"It's already ruined so I guess it won't make that much of a difference, will it?" she sighed. "Yeah, go ahead." Sora took the dress from her and walked upstairs to her room.

"I'm going to get dressed. We have a meeting in the afternoon about the Spring-Summer collection of next year and the bosses want to hear some of my ideas."

The night was settling across the sea. Taichi exited the high building where he worked. He threw his small case into the passenger's seat of his car as he entered. The autumn was finally giving in space for winter. He wouldn't be admired if tomorrow it was raining, by the looks of the sky as he drove to his house. He wondered what Sakura would be doing. Maybe she was cooking something incredibly delicious to him like she had done the last week, when she got off from work earlier. She had phoned him a few minutes before he left his office, asking if he was going to be home in hours. Last week it had been the same and when he got home, there was not only a delicious plate on the table but also beautiful. Sakura had a lot of gifts and cooking was definitely one of them.

He suddenly noticed he had missed his turn. Sighing, he simply continued ahead, knowing that a few metres away he could make a turn back and get on the right way again. For moments, he didn't notice where he was. That was until a familiar building crossed his view.

It wasn't his intention to slow down, but he did, as he stared at the familiar window. It was closed. When she was there it was never closed. When a head approached the window, he almost could see her auburn hair appearing from behind the glass, but instead a slightly old woman opened the window and peeked outside. Then she just got back inside, closing the window and shuts after her.

Taichi shook his head. Sora was no longer living in Japan and he knew whose fault was it. Maybe that was a good thing for both him and her. Nevertheless, it hurt him, knowing he couldn't count with her presence again when something happened. And, on the reverse, he wouldn't be there for her when she needed, like they always had supported each other since childhood, like two good friends. Something, however, seemed to somehow relief him: the fact that she was with Mimi. That way, he knew she was not alone in a completely strange country.

Once again, he shook his head, forcing himself away from the distant window. He arrived home shortly after. Like he had imagined, Sakura had prepared a delicious meal. The table was set with two plates on the each extremity of the short table; bottle of wine and the respective glasses; and for completing the romantic environment, a single short and wide red candle, floating in the middle of a liquid covered with petals.

"Welcome home, love." She greeted him with a kiss. She too was dressed up for the occasion. Her long black hair was falling over her shoulders and that was the only thing that was over her shoulders. She wore a wine coloured dress with a deep neckline, which showed off her shoulders. It had a long split that reached inches over her knees, from where he could see the lingerie he had offered her in her last birthday, in provocative colours of black and red.

The meal was great and so it was the night. It was hard to leave the comfort of the blankets and the warmness of Sakura's arms the next morning, but with a little more effort and despite the girls pleads, Taichi got up and prepared for another day of work.

The autumn gave time to winter, and New York was covered in a white cloak of snow. Sora dared to peek outside, bringing back inside a cold nose.

"It's going to be difficult to get to work today." Mimi stated as she too peeked outside, closing the window almost instantly. "We should get the subway for exchange. That way my car won't get stuck in the snow like last time." She murmured the last words as she walked back to the kitchen table and picked another toast.

"All this snow is giving me great ideas for next Autumn-Winter collection." Sora said as she sat happily on her chair and chewed her third toast while she drank small bits of milk. She put her hand over her mouth as she felt something coming up her throat and a burp came out.

"Sorry!" she exclaimed apologetically to Mimi that eyed her from the corner of her eye.

"You're eating a lot this last month, aren't you? And strange things too?" Mimi stated as she took a sip of milk. "I don't know what the thing is of eating bread with a tablet of chocolate inside." She continued eying her through the corner of her eyes.

Sora simply shook her hand, like blowing away the issue. "It's all this changes. I'm feeling lacking." She smiled. Mimi smiled too as she put her toast down and walked behind her. In a cute picture, she embraced Sora from behind and kissed her cheek.

"Oh, poor little girl, she's lacking." She said in a baby directed voice. "Don't worry. Mimi will take good care of you and be your best friend." The two of them laughed. Then, the brown haired woman put on a serious face and forced Sora to look at her. "You should go see a doctor. Morning sickness, huge appetite…!"

Sora didn't follow Mimi's advice. It is said that when a woman is pregnant, she doesn't need anyone to tell it to her. A woman can feel it. And Sora could feel something growing inside of her. The colour on the pregnancy test that evening was only a confirmation for something she already suspected.

She caressed her belly, an innocent smile plastered on her features.

"Why are you smiling and…oh, my goodness! Are you pregnant?" Mimi ran to her friend's side, taking the couch near Sora's. There was a mix of anxiety and happiness in her features. "But…how! When…" this where probably the questions that would come to anyone's mind, considering the fact that Sora wasn't married or had a boyfriend for the matter and that she had only been in a completely different country for two months. Of course, Mimi considered that it had happened in Japan, before they moved. Still, she feared to ask the most important question. "Who's the father?"

Sora's smile seemed to flatter for a second, but then she looked out the window and a new confidence seemed to fill her.

"I don't care." She replied. The consequences that saying something like that could bring were not at stake being Mimi her best friend and knowing her better than anyone else. However, the all situation got Mimi a little confused.

"What do you mean you don't care!" she asked astonished. "Don't you think the father would want to know that…well, he's going to be a father?" she emphasized.

"No, I don't think he would want to know that right now." She replied quite convinced of her reply.

Mimi smiled. "Then you know who the father is." To this, Sora replied with silence, slightly biting her bottom lip. It was going to be her little secret and she wouldn't tell it to a soul, not even Mimi. "So, you don't want to tell me? That's okay." The brown haired replied, a bit of sadness invading her as she leaned back onto the comfort of the couch. Silence fell between the two.

"Still, it's a good thing, right? You being pregnant? I get to be like an aunt?" Mimi smiled. The auburn haired took her eyes from the window and smiled as well. She then stood and enveloped Mimi in her arms, in a very sisterly way. "Of course it is."

* * *

_And the plot denses. I suspect you were already expecting this. But what will happen next?_

_Thanks to the reviewers: couragechild, anon, dbz, darkmetalangel of destruction._

_No this won't have any Takeru or Jyou for now. At least I'm not planning it, since this will be a simple short story. But as for Mimi, you can see that she had an important role._

_Don't forget to review this one._

_Ja ne, tomodashi_


	3. Time Flies

**Unsuspected**

By

Marie Darkholme

**Chapter Three **– Time flies

"Aunt Mimi, Aunt Mimi, come quickly." The voice of a little child echoed through the apartment and reached Mimi's rooms. The girl quickly put down the nail polisher and exited the room. In front of the television, a young girl sat happily, clapping her hands in anticipation.

"Is it on, already?" Mimi asked as she took her place on the couch besides the little girl, pushing her closer to her. "Have you pulled the record button already?"

"Yeah, it's recording already, Aunt Mimi." the girl shrieked. Little by little, the publicity ended and gave space to a styling contest. "Look, there's mommy." The girl shrieked once again. Mimi smiled as she patted her head. "Mommy is in Paris! Mommy is in Paris!" she stood and sung happily.

The brown haired woman, who had recently died all her hair in a soft tone of pink smiled. "Okay, calm down Ai." She tried to calm the girl. Ai smiled innocently and sat back quietly, her legs crossed.

It had been six years since that fateful moment, when Mimi had discovered that her friend was pregnant. Even thought she didn't want to admit it, she feared that the pregnancy would bring lots of problems to Sora. After all, she was new in the company and getting pregnant all the sudden, would undoubtedly affect her work, as it eventually did.

The following years to Sora's pregnancy had been the hardest, but the two together had been able to surpass all the difficulties. Ai was Sora's most precious possession and she would do anything for her. The auburn haired had underlined that same sentence over and over, whenever Mimi was ready to give up, and now there she was. She had managed to come all the way to the top, by herself.

"Look Aunt Mimi, that girl has the same dress that mommy made for me." The girl told the woman quietly. There was silence which made Mimi look to the girls beautiful auburn eyes. "When is mommy coming back?" she asked quietly, not without trying to hide a hint of sadness. Mimi caressed her wild hair. "Don't worry, mommy will be back sooner than you expect." She assured the girl. "And I'm sure she will bring a pretty gift." She added as they both continued to see the fashion show.

"Hey, Taichi, wait up, man." Yamato yelled as he saw a familiar head crossing his path. Taichi turned to the sound of a familiar voice. Seeing Yamato, he threw his case inside the car and closed it, putting the keys back into his pocked.

"Long time no see." They greeted. "How are you, Yamato? It's been a while since I've last seen you." The blond smirked.

"Well, you know how it goes when you have a band to run." Yamato said. He waited for the brown haired to say something but he didn't. An awkward silence fell between the two. Yamato looked nervously around, trying to find a suitable issue to start a conversion. "So..." he started, but the words failed him.

"I heard Koushiro has a new girlfriend?" Taichi said out of the blue with a mocking voice. Yamato followed his lead.

"Yeah, he does. I think her name is Asuka." He replied as he tried to remember Koushiro's latest girlfriend name. He saw a confused smile appear on Taichi's face.

"Wasn't Asuka the last month girlfriend? That's the blond, right?" he asked. Yamato nodded. "But I saw him the other day and it wasn't Asuka that was with him, because this one was taller and had black hair, so…" the two laughed and Yamato cursed, amused.

"I should be the one having a different date every week." He replied.

"And why is that?" Taichi mocked. "You're only the band manager. Who gets the girls are the band members." He stated. Yamato nodded.

"Very true, very true indeed."

The same silence fell between the two again. Now it seemed like they didn't have anything more in common besides a shared friend and past. Nothing had happened between the two. The time and distance had made its way through them and when they occasionally got together, it seemed they were strangers greeting each other.

"What about you, how are you?" Yamato asked. The brown haired immediately understood what he meant. A weak smile spread across his face.

"I'm okay."

"Okay." Yamato replied after another bit of silence.

"Have you heard from Mimi?" Taichi asked. Yamato narrowed his eyes.

"Why do you ask?" he inquired. It was a strange question to make, after all, Mimi and Taichi had never been the best of friends. They were more like acquainted. They met through Sora, because Mimi was her best girlfriend and Taichi was her best boyfriend, so they got to do something together and all, but not that he would ask about her in a moment like that.

"Just thinking I could make her a visit, since I'm going on a business trip to New York next week." He replied with a faint smile.

"Well, last time I checked everything was fine, but you know how Mimi is. Anything can happen." Yamato laughed. Taichi allowed himself to accompany his laugh.

"What about Sora? Have you heard from her?" the brown haired continued. Yamato narrowed his eyes once again. It had been six years since Sora had accompanied Mimi to New York. Since then, he had news from her from time to time. She was still living with Mimi and her career seemed to be going well, but he never got into many details. Could it be possible that her best friend hadn't had news form her?

"Well, actually, I don't quite know. Mimi e-mails me from time to time but we never get into many details." He explained. "You know how it goes, how are you, what have you been doing… those kind of stuff." He could get a hint of something in Taichi's eyes, but he couldn't quite put his finger at it.

A new silence fell between the two and Taichi faintly looked into his watch. He slapped his forehead and began searching for his keys.

"Look at the time. I've really got to go, Yamato. Nice to see you though. I've got to get some paperwork done before the end of the day and send it or I'll be toast meet." Taichi said as he opened the door of his car and got into it. "See ya." He waved as the car disappeared in the road.

"_Excuse moi, monsieur._" Sora avoided collapsing against an old man who was walking in her direction, knocking down another man's case. She ran as fast as she could, avoiding as much as possible all the obstacles, people or objects, in her way. Her hair flew around her, unable to be kept in the small hat she used.

She could hear the number of her flight being called on the microphone in the airport. "Last call for all passengers. Flight Paris/New York on gate 23, leaving in five minutes." She sped up putting a hand over her hat, assuring it wouldn't fly behind her with the wind from her velocity. Her only case hung over her shoulder and she struggled to keep it there, while she made a nineteen degree turn. She could see the flight attendant preparing to close the doors to the plane. She made a desperate call, waving her ticket. "Wait, I'm on that flight."

Sora sat on a bench and sighed. That wasn't on her plans at all. Putting the case besides her, she took a deep breath. "If only they wouldn't have waited five more seconds, I would have made it in time." She complained, rather annoyed. But it was pointless. She would have to wait for the next flight that would be in about four hours. Still, it wasn't that bad. Had she been on the next flight and missed it, she would have to spent the night thee and catch the plane the next day.

Sighing, the auburn haired took her hat and arranged her long hair. It had grown quite a bit now that she took a good look at it. Her neck length hair had turned out to become a middle back length hair. Feeling frustrated and without nothing else to do, she braid her hair into two long braids tying them with two blue ribbons matching her hat, that she then put back on her head. Glancing to the pay phone, she saw it was already empty and walked towards it, picking her case.

She quickly inserted some euros and dialled the memorized numbers. The calling sound echoed in her ears as she waited. One, two, three times until a familiar voice answered from the other side.

"Mimi, it's me." Sora said. "No, I'm still at the airport. I lost the flight so I'll have to wait for the next one." "No, don't stay up for me. I'll catch a cab when I get there." Sora laughed to Mimi's comment. "I know it's dangerous to…" "No, don't worry." "Yeah, it's in about three and half hours so I'll have to do a lot of waiting." "Is she asleep?" Sora smiled. "Give her a kiss for me and say I'm sorry." A melancholic smile crossed the auburn haired face. "Hi, honey." She greeted in a soft tone of voice. "Mommy lost her plane." "Yes, I'll be back soon. Don't stay up waiting for me, okay?" "Kisses. Bye bye." Sora waited for the dial tone to sound again. Only then she put down the phone.

"…Please take your sits and put on your seatbelts, we're approaching the airport…" the sound of the flight attendant woke him from his trance. Of course he knew they were nearing the airport. He could quite see the lights through the window as well as other planes already landed. Yawning, the brown haired put on his seatbelt and tried to relax. Taking off and landing were the two moments he most hated in a flight.

The flight attendant dressed in her tight, yet practical blue uniform started checking if everyone was sat and had their belts on. She was pleased to see that those first class passengers were following her orders and she too returned to her place where she put on her seatbelt.

Taichi knew the plane was starting to loose altitude when his ears started being pressed. He chewed on his gum, clearing the hearing canals as he did. A little trick a friend had taught him. Through the window, the city was becoming closer and closer and as it did, he could see it with more details. He could even distinguish the cars and people in the streets. It was always a beautiful landscape, no matter how many times you fly over a city, to see it from above in the night; everything else black as pitch and then, slowly as they approach, the light of the night city becoming visible. He couldn't quite get it how people had ever survived without light.

His contemplation was interrupted by the shake caused by the contact of the plane's landing gear with the track. It was finally over. He had landed safely and without another earache like last time he had got on a plane. Of course last time it had been to Russia and it was wind and rain. He had considered it a miracle they could land without much trouble that day.

The lights with the tighten belt and the cross over the cigarette disappeared as the plane slowly directed himself to its place. Some passengers started taking their bags and cases from the compartments above their seats, but the brown haired remained calmly sat on his place, waiting for the airplane to come to a complete halt.

He crossed with relative familiarity the path that took him to the luggage picking place. After all, airports were basically the same and after a few rides you get used to their organization. The place was already filled with people, but Taichi could see that the luggage had yet not started to be distributed. The rolling carpet, however was already working. The brown haired approached and placed himself on the beginning of the rolling carpet, assuring that way that no one would, by mistake, take his suitcase. It had happened to him before and it was a real pain in the ass.

The first thing rolling in front of him was a big suitcase in shades of bright pink that immediately made him think of Mimi. He watched as a woman picked it up. She, however, had nothing to do with Mimi. Her long blue painted hair with pink stripes fell over her astonishing revealing pink shirt, which neckline showed her black bra. Her eyes were covered by way too much make-up and she wore high heeled boots that gave her a slosh walking.

Taichi turned his attention to the suitcases again. Some had already crossed his path but none of them was its. It was amazing how suitcases matched most of their owners. There was a black suitcase made of a strong plastic that belonged to a tall black suited man, whom carried it with ease through the corridor; or the small red case that belonged to a well dressed lady in a pair of glasses with thick red hoops. There was also a small girl accompanied by her parents that had some difficulty taking it off the rolling carpet, having to be helped by her mother that quickly retrieved the suitcase before it disappeared on the other end.

Suitcases came and went as all the people around him. Nevertheless, none of them was his. He started worrying when he noticed there were only other three people in the large saloon with him. One of them left with a blue suitcase, the last coming in the rolling carpet, leaving him and another man staring at the empty place, wandering where their bags were.

The brown haired sighed and immediately directed to the costumed balcony to get his explanations. So far, he had already lost his luggage for four times, which was good, considering he would carry it in airplane voyages every month. Only once had he not been able to recover it while at the hotel. When he did recover it, it had stamps from the five continents.

One hour and thousands of explanations among excuses, he had recovered his suitcase. It had been _misplaced,_ as the company representative had brightly put it, to the New York/Tokyo connection. Fortunately, he had complained in time, otherwise, his suitcase would have returned to Tokyo.

His yawn was interrupted by a shiver as the cold of the night made contact with his unprepared skin. Now he still had to catch a cab. Fortunately, cabs were abundant in New York. Unfortunately, he wasn't the only one looking for one. There were a bunch of people entering to the cabs parked in front of the airport's entrance. One by one they all left, leaving Taichi and some other people waiting.

From between the small crowd, something got his attention. There was a woman with a medium sized sportive bag over her shoulder that didn't combine with her outfit one bit. She wore a short blue skirt with a matching shirt. His eyes glued on her legs for a while. She had beautiful legs. But as he eyed her from bottom to top, something else stole his glare. Her hair was of a familiar shade of auburn, braid and partially covered by a small blue hat that fit it perfectly.

Unaware to himself he had started approaching the strange woman that seemed so familiar, nevertheless. She looked like…but she couldn't be, could she? No, it was just a coincidence. It couldn't be her. However, her hair was exactly the same colour. He was sure of that. That woman had the exact same colour of Sora's hair.

A cab stopped in front of her. Glancing around making sure that she wasn't passing anyone's turn, she opened the door and quickly shoved her bag inside and entered without delay. As she did, she glanced back again. For a moment, she could have sworn she had seen a familiar shade of brown between the crowds. Nevertheless, she was tired and it hadn't been the first time that she had seen that familiar hair, that face appearing to her. But every time she looked back, he wasn't there anymore. So this time she didn't.

The trip home was quite. She had been lucky to get an old man for driver. He listened to his music and didn't do many questions. When they arrived, she paid him and the man left without a word.

Sora sighed with happiness and tiredness as she turned the key on the lock and entered as quietly as she could. The noise of the television quickly filled her ears. She put down her bag and walked to the living-room where she found Mimi sleeping with the television on. There was an action and comedy movie on and apparently not even that had managed to keep Mimi awake.

The auburn haired bent slightly and kissed the girl's forehead, pushing the small blanket over Mimi's shoulders. Then she proceeded to the bedrooms.

"Is this time to arrive?" Mimi's sleepy voice made her turn. The woman was sitting and suppressing a yawn. Sora smiled as she tiptoed back to her side.

"I thought you were asleep." She said. Mimi yawned again and stood.

"I was, but your kiss woke me from my beauty sleep." she replied. "How was your trip?"

"Good, considering the half hour delay." Sora complained. "Is Ai asleep?"

Mimi passed by Sora and walked to the kitchen to get a cup of water. "Yeah, but she's in your bed." She informed with a smile. The auburn haired smiled back.

"Thanks. I'm going to bed then. I'm dead tired." She suppressed a yawn. "Good night."

Mimi said good night back and entered her own bedroom.

Sora tiptoed into her bedroom. A small figure lied curled in the sheets and blankets over her bed, her wild hair across the pillows. Sora smiled. She looked like an angel, sleeping so peacefully. And it was. She was her angel. She couldn't keep herself from bending and kissing the girl's smooth skin. With quick and quite movements, the auburn haired put on her pyjama's and softly slid into the bed, adjusting the sheets and covers in order to cover herself and her child. The girl smiled as she curled near the warmness that had joined her in the sheets.

"Welcome mommy." She said, her eyes still closed, as she put her small hand over Sora. The woman pushed the girl closer and kissed her. The girl's eyes opened for a moment, a smile crossing her lips. But she quickly returned to her sleep as Sora softly caressed her in her arms.

* * *

_Well, how did I go? Don't forget to review._

_Thanks to _Anubis24 _and_ DarkMetalAngel of Destruction _for reviewing chap2. It was a girl indeed _Anubis24_, but just because I think girls are more sweet and woukld serve the purpose better. Of course that if it was a boy he wouldn't be a copy of Taichi. He would have Sora's eyes, just like Ai._

_Thanks everyone and I'll update as soon as I can...hopefully before Christmas because by then I won't be at home and therefore won't have a computer to post the chappie._

_Sayonara, minna...and if we don't talk before...Merry Christmas_


	4. Ambushed

**Unsuspected**

By

Marie Darkholme

**Chapter Four** – Ambushed

"So, I give this reunion for ended." Taichi suppressed a yawn. Finally the reunion was over. He wouldn't be able to take for much longer. One of the reasons he loved his job was because he had the opportunity of travelling through the world. That would bring some troubles to other things like a private life, but he had learned how to deal with it and especially now he loved going on business' trips. That is, until the actual part of the work begun. He just hated those boring first reunions were nothing was decided and people would just talk about nonsense for an endlessly time.

He stretched his arms as he left the building and the yawn he had suppressed earlier uncounted times was able to come out. The sky was amazingly clear for the beginning of the winter and he stared at it for a while. The sky was…so beautiful, so…amazing and quiet. Especially during the sunset when… He quickly obliged himself away from those thoughts. Flickering the case on his hands, he started his way back to the hotel.

After a deserved lunch and bath, he put on his sunglasses and his jeans and exited the room, prepared to take a long walk through New York. It had been a while since the last time he had been there. Some things had changed, but mostly, New York was the same. It would never change that much.

He entered a familiar cafeteria, one that he had found seven years ago, the last time he had been there. It was still in the same place and nothing had changed. As soon as he arrived, he recognized the same man who had served him at the counter. Sitting at a table, he asked for a coffee.

The cafeteria was strangely comfortable. Maybe it was the soft mix of pastel colours that abounded, along with the paintings. It was very clean and bright and like he had just thought, a good place for studying, judging by the auburn haired girl sitting at a table, books sprawled across it.

The bartender served her a hot chocolate and Taichi heard her thanking him before going back to her books. He tried to look more closely at what she was doing. It seemed to him that she had some draws and tissues over the table, but before he could thing whatever, the bartender approached him. He looked over to the list of things and simply decided for a coffee, turning back his attention to the girl. Unfortunately, the only thing he saw of her, was her hair disappearing and the cafeteria's door closing.

Sighing, he turned back to his coffee. It was the second time he saw that girl, since he was sure it was the same girl from the airport. Her hair was unmistakable. And it was the second time he wondered if that wasn't Sora he was seeing there. But now, it was too much of a coincidence. The girl was probably on business like him and had stayed in an hotel near the cafeteria like him, being that the only reason why he had met with her again.

He left a coin over the table and exited the cafeteria. The wind was slightly cold, he noticed. A shiver crossed his body making him shake. He had just turned the corner when he heard his name being called. The first time he ignored it, thinking he had just misheard. But when the voice seemed to approach and called clearly his name again, he turned.

"Long time, no see." A familiar face met his. Her bright pink streaked hair flowing around her, two bags on each hand. Mimi immediately put down the bags and involved him in a warm embrace. "How have you been Yagami, Taichi?" she asked as she let go of him. But Taichi was still too surprised to see how different she looked to say anything at all. "You are Yagami, Taichi?" Mimi took a step back, embarrassment starting to show on her face. "Oh my, don't tell me, you're not…"

"No, no, it's me Mimi. I'm just…" Taichi interrupted. "…surprised to see you." He smiled. The girl smiled back.

"Not as much as I am. After all, you do know I live here. You, on the other hand…what are you doing here?" she interrupted herself. He smiled.

"I'm here on a business trip." He replied with a sheepishly smile crossing his lips. There was a question bothering him, but he didn't have the courage to ask Mimi the answer.

"Hmm, a business trip…I see." The pink streaked girl mumbled. Then her face light up suddenly. "I know. How about you come and have dinner with us tonight?" she quickly asked, taking him by his arm. "I'm sure Sora will be happy to see you." She continued, dragging him into a store.

Taichi smiled. His answer had been given and he didn't even have had the need to ask.

"So, what do you say?" Mimi asked putting a dress in front of her. Taichi laughed.

"You haven't changed bit, have you?" he commented. "It suits you well."

"Not the dress, moron." She giggled. "The dinner. But of course it suits me well. I am, after all, an expert in fashion."

The question floated in his mind for a while. Dinner would be nice, but after six years and all that had happen, he wasn't sure of how he would feel to be around Sora again. Like she had said that night: everything had changed.

"Sure." He smiled, putting his hands n his pockets.

"Great." Mimi sung happily as she paid the dress, adding another bag to her four bag collection. "I'll ask Sora to go and pick you up. By the way, where are you staying?" they had now exited the store and Mimi was making sure she hadn't forgot anything.

"At the Melià New York Hotel." He quickly answered. The girl nodded, searching through her purse for something.

"Okay, then I'll…oh, shit, I forgot my cell." She cursed. Giving Taichi a sheepish smile, she closed her purse quickly. "I'll have Sora to get you, but give me your cell number just in case I change something. But you have to write it down since I forgot my cell." She excused herself.

"Let's do it this way. You give me your number and I'll send you a message with mine." Taichi quickly solved the problem. Nowadays he didn't carry pens or notebooks. He had a small electronic agenda where he noted everything he needed. Mimi said him her number and marked the meeting hour, after which they said goodbye to each other.

While Taichi went back to his hotel, Mimi continued her shopping for another hour. She was planning the night minutely. Nothing could be left behind. The menu had already been decided and she had bought everything she needed. The only thing left to do was preparing dinner and telling Sora about her guest. She arrived home, two hours before the time she had agreed Sora to meet Taichi. The auburn haired was already at home. She was helping Ai with her homework, when Mimi opened the door.

"Hello!" she greeted happily. "I'm home."

"I'm doing my homework, Aunt Mimi." The little girl called from her room. "I've learned the L today. Now I know how to write Lily." She heard Sora calming her down.

"C'mon, do your homework. Mommy needs to talk with Aunt Mimi, so I'll check them when you're finished." Sora caressed her daughter's hair.

"Can I go and watch anime after it, mommy?" Ai asked. Sora nodded and kissed her forehead.

When Sora entered the room, Mimi was finishing unpacking her new dresses, shirts, skirts and scarves, among other accessories and clothes. The auburn haired sat on the small couch on the bed's bottom and waited patiently for Mimi to finish unpacking, but before she could say whatever, Mimi started.

"We have a guest tonight." She informed. Sora eyed her curious.

"A guest! Who?" she asked interested. Mimi smirked.

"I bet you can't guess." Mimi mocked. The auburn haired smacked her on the shoulder when she sat by her side on the couch.

"C'mon, tell me. Who's coming?" she asked. Mimi shook her head. There was silence between them while the auburn haired stared at her friend, trying to make her spill the beans. However, Mimi was determined to make it a secret. They were interrupted by the sound of Mimi's cell phone beeping. "You have a message." Sora replied as she stood. "If you don't want to tell me it's okay. What about dinner?"

"I'll make it. You just try to look beautiful." Mimi shouted to the kitchen as she noted Taichi's cell phone number in her own phone. She grinned happily. There was just one thing missing. She stood up and walked into the kitchen where Sora was eating an apple. "You'll have to pick up my guest, since I'm doing dinner and all." she informed her auburn friend as she turned her back to put some shops over the counter. Sora snarled.

"I hope you aren't trying finding me a date again." Sora walked to her side. Mimi smirked as she walked to the fridge and stuffed a lettuce into the fridge, avoiding her on purpose. Sora sighed. "So, what time to I have to go pick this mystery guest up?"

Mimi looked at her watch. "In about two hours." She quickly informed. "Now, go get ready and leave dinner with Mimi." and with that final statement, Mimi pushed Sora off the kitchen and closed the door behind her, exhibiting a huge smirk.

"Hey!" Sora complained when she felt the door being shut after her. "What should I wear? Casual or formal?" she continued slightly annoyed. On the other side of the door, Mimi put on a thoughtful look.

"Casual but formal." She replied and returned to her preparations.

Sora left pacing rather furious with her matchmaker friend. She was sure this was going to be one of those annoying dinners where Mimi would present her another annoying man. Dating was definitely not in her priorities. She had more important things to worry about. No one would ever equal… she shook the name away from her mind, remembering that hair from the airport. She sighed as she reached Ai's room. The little girl was now occupied playing with the new doll her mother had brought her from Paris.

"Have you finished your homework, pumpkin?" she asked as she nested near the playing child. Ai nodded pointing to the notebook over the large desk. Sora picked the notebook and verified happily that all the exercises were correct. She turned her eyes to the girl again. She had his hair, no doubt about there; that messy mass of brown hair that so much characterized Taichi when he was younger. Of course, over the years he had managed to tame it better. Still, it continued to be messy and yet fluffy.

Walking to her room, she closed the door and curled into a little person ball on the bed. Closing her eyes, she could almost feel his arms around her, hushing her. Of course she had been with other men after him. Still, nothing seemed to be able to make her forget that night. Nothing could make her forget the taste of his lips and his perfume over her…

She shook her head and stood. "Let's get ready to pick up the guest." She mumbled in the darkness of the room, and even though it was still much time to go, she started getting dress.

The woman in the attendance counter was annoying him to say the least. It had been clearly more than fifteen minutes and still she couldn't attend him.

"Excuse me, but I have to get ready for a dinner and I would like to have my card." He complained again. The girl with big brown eyes and long blond hair launched him a distressed look. She was clearly new in the serving the customer thing.

"I'm…very…very sorry sir, but I can't seem to find…your card. Are you sure you left it here?" she asked, her voice shaking nervously. Taichi sighed.

"Look, try to relax. Yes I'm sure I…"

"Hey, you girl, you gave me the wrong card…" an angry customer pushed Taichi and almost grabbed the blonde's neck. "There I was trying to get into my room when I see it's the 271 that I have and not the 217. Are you trying to make a stupid out of me, girl?" the man approached dangerously the counter, making the blond step back. "The manager will surely have a note about this in his desk tomorrow. Now give me my card."

The girl quickly searched for the 217 card and fearfully handed it to the angry man that left the other card over the counter with a roar. The girl tried hard not to burst out crying. The brown haired picked his card and smiled to her and trying to calm her down. He eventually managed to take her to the bar and make her drink a cup of tea. When he was done, it was almost time to meet Sora. By just remembering it, it turned out to be slightly difficult to get the card to pass on the door.

He tried to calm himself with a cold shower that shook all the bones he had. Staring at the clothes in his small bag, he chose casual yet slightly formal clothes: a pair of black tissue pants with a loose white chemise and a black overcoat. Looking into the mirror, he couldn't help noticing that if the pants were green and he wasn't wearing the overcoat they would look like his school uniform. He splattered some aftershave over his half made bear. Taking three deep breaths and making sure nothing was missing, he exited the door of his room, left the card with a man substituting the blond girl on the attendance counter and stood outside.

The night was starting to fill with clouds and the moon was nowhere to be seen. He noticed how there were no visible stars in the sky. In Japan he could see the stars. The clouds covered the last clean space he could see in the gaps between the buildings. Now he was sure it was going to rain.

After about ten minutes of waiting, a black car stopped in front of the hotel's door. He disguisedly looked into the car, trying to see the driver. His heart had a sudden shock when he recognized Sora in the driver's seat. Trying to control his pounding heart, he approached the car and…Sora opened the door from inside the car.

"Sorry I'm late. Traffic was horrid and…" she stopped in middle sentence seeing a familiar person entering to the passenger seat. There was silence. A deep, uncomfortable silence as Sora looked completely stunned to Taichi. As for the brown haired, he was more astonished with her look. Her long hair, partially caught in the two sides of the head with two small hairclips; her black shirt, tightened to her always perfect body; her lips, enhance by a soft tone of pink lip gloss and her unforgettable auburn eyes, burning behind a small thread of black eyeliner.

"Hello Sora." He greeted, breaking the uncomfortable silence. She avoided his eyes. Her heart was racing. Was it possible that he was even hotter than what she remembered? That his chocolate eyes could look yet more beautiful and astonishing? Was it possible that he was really there and not just her imagination?

"Hello…Taichi."

* * *

_Hi people, sorry for the delate, but now it's here, but IO really got to go, or my mom will definately kill me._

_Sayonara minna_


	5. Bomb Dinner

**Unsuspected**

By

Marie Darkholme

**Chapter Five** – Bomb dinner

What was crossing through Sora's mind as she drove through the streets of New York with an unexpected passenger by her side were of mostly of anger. In fact, she was sure that if Tachikawa, Mimi was as near as her as Taichi was, she would turn history in two seconds. The auburn haired was burning in anger towards her best friend. How could she have done what she had just done was beyond Sora's reasoning. She felt like to kill Mimi, break her neck, blow her head off, throw her off a building…Fortunately for Mimi, and Sora too, since spending her life in prison wasn't exactly her dream for the future, the pink streaked haired wasn't there and neither would Sora ever be able to commit such a hideous crime.

In fact, the auburn haired could point some reasons for Mimi not telling her that Taichi was her mystery guest. Slowly, she began to calm down and as she did, her anger gave place to a shivering fear. She tried to calm herself down. There was no way that Ai would still be up when she got home.

She looked into the car's watch and bit her lips. Nine o'clock was Ai's curfew; besides, Mimi knew not to let the little six years girl walk around when they were having dinner with someone, especially when it turned out to be some of Mimi's dates. She allowed herself to relax, even if not completely. The company wouldn't allow her too.

It had been a while, most exactly seven years since she had last seen his face. He was smiling by then, even if it was not for her. For a split second, something inside her asked for the whereabouts of Sakura. The other side of her, told her that the brown haired was probably…not absolutely in a business trip and that was the reason why he was alone.

The environment was way too heavy around them, the silence saying more than she wanted. Because the silence was telling him she hadn't forgot about him, that she still longed for him… feeling too uncomfortable on her own car, she took the moment when the traffic light was red to turn on the radio. A strange music burst through the columns of the car. Obviously Mimi had messed with the station again. However, even if strange and unknown to her, she found it fascinatingly beautiful. The voice was entering her with her soft melody…

…

_The memories ease the pain inside,_

_Now I know why._

_All of my memories keep you near._

_In silent moments imagine you here._

_All of my memories keep you near._

_Your silent whispers, silent tears._

Taichi listened. He knew the music. It was from a group called Within Temptation and though he couldn't quite put the finger in the name of the music, at the moment, it just didn't seem to matter.

He dare not looking to the girl driving besides him. He dare not speak a word, afraid to awaken a sleepy beast. He could tell she was surprised to see him. He could tell she would kill Mimi if she had the chance. He was surprised at how much she had changed and yet stayed the same.

The music started filling him, just like the memories. It was right. The memories kept her near him, even when she ran away. He never knew why…no, he knew the reason. He just couldn't accept the fact that he had lost her because she loved him. Because she loved him, she could not see him again. At the same time, he understood and despised her decision. With time, he learned to only understand and finally accept. It had been the best decision after all. In spite of that, it didn't make the confusion diminish in him, only made it larger and larger, like swirling candy cotton. It took time, but he managed to understand everything, and though everything had changed, one thing remained unalterable: love.

The music had ended and as another filled the air, he allowed himself to look at her only to be surprised by her own eyes mirroring him.

"How have you been?" she asked her voice neutral. She had always been quite good to hide her emotions. He knew she felt like to scream at the moment.

"Good." He replied. It didn't occur him anything else to say. Well… in fact it occurred him quite an amount of questions, half of them he didn't had the courage to ask, the other half weren't appropriated for the occasion, so he just asked the most common question. "You?"

"Fine." Sora replied.

Those were basically the only words they traded during the entire journey. It would have been short if it wasn't for the always chaotic traffic. Each one of them in its own world, trying to drive away thoughts that were strangely similar, because staring by the corner of their eyes, the only thing they could think of was he last time they had been together, that fateful night that neither of two could forget.

When arrived at hers and Mimi's place, Sora's heart begun to throb as the rhythm started to accelerate again. In her mind, she prayed silently that Ai was silent asleep in her cosy bed with her Pooh bed sheets. She slowly picked the keys from her pocket, taking her time, trying to listen to any sound from her beloved child from the other side, the fear of lost and anger growing inside her. She hoped that any traces of Ai had been completely erased from the house: the books, the games, the fluffy toys, the cars.

Taichi followed the auburn haired through the stairs that led to her apartment that he knew she shared with Mimi. He couldn't stop himself from looking her from top to bottom. She was indeed beautiful. As she reached the door, he noticed how she played with the keys, and inquired himself if she was trying to stalk time before they went in. finally, after a long sigh and some murmurs that he could not understand, the turned the key in the lock and opened the door. He could see her hands trembling slightly, though she masked it very well. However, he was the master at seeing when people were nervous; it helped a lot in his job. She was definitely nervous, he just couldn't figure out the reason. He doubted that his mere presence could put her hands shaking like that. At least, not anymore. She had learned to control those kinds of feelings around him; to stop looking at him with longing mirrored in her eyes. He sighed and followed her lead into the house.

He watched rather amused as Mimi appeared in front of them with a comic pink apron. The house was bigger than it appeared from outside, with a large entrance room. The table was set on the dining-room with three plates with its respective silverwares, napkins and two sets of glasses, one for water and the other for wine.

"You've arrived finally. I feared to have to eat all this food by myself." Mimi joked as she greeted Taichi with a kiss on the cheek, her gloved hands backing away from the brown haired's clean outfit. "Now go and settle down on the dining-room." She continued pushing him into the small beige painted room. "You can choose the wine from those in the shelf and open it. We'll be right back, guest." She mocked him.

As soon as her eyes set on the entrance, Sora's face began to relax. There were no signs that Ai was awake or even living there in fact. Nevertheless, seeing Mimi, the friend who had so sneakily ambushed her awoke some of the primary instincts she had had earlier. The knives over the counter in the kitchen looked suddenly helpful. However, the auburn haired limited her killing instincts to glare at Mimi.

The pink streaked hair girl continued to chop the vegetables to the salad. Sora looked around and leaned the door, making sure Taichi wouldn't hear her. However, before she could say a single word, Mimi interrupted her.

"We'll talk after the dinner, okay?" she asked, looking the other girl in the eyes. Sora sighed exasperated and nodded. "Ai's asleep." She informed seconds later. Then, she stuffed a board in Sora's hands and pushed off the kitchen. "Go keep company to our guest." She ordered. Still not very happy with the situation, but slightly more relieved, Sora walked to the dining-room where Taichi was admiring the fairly large amount of wines the girl had on the shelf.

"You have quite a collection here, huh?" he said as she entered the room. Sora smiled. People at work liked to give bottles of wine, especially expensive bottles of wine, to her and Mimi. Why, she didn't know. "Let's have this one." Taichi continued, taking one of the bottles. He could feel Sora's gaze on his back as she moved to take a place in the dinner table.

The silence set between the two again, as Taichi pretended to watch the wine closely and Sora rearranged her silverwares. When Taichi was about to open his mouth, Mimi came in, carrying a large board with lasagne. It had an incredible good aspect.

"Here you have." She said smiling through all her pores as she put the board over the table. Sora cursed inwardly. If it was to make lasagne she could have done it herself and Mimi could have gone pick Taichi up.

"Err, Mimi…I don't think wine would got that well with lasagne." Taichi tried not to make the menu sound bad. Actually it had been a while since he ate homemade lasagne, since he always ended up by burning something, whether it was the cheese or the pasta or sometimes even the meet.

Mimi smiled sheepishly. "You're probably right. I'll get the beer and the ice tea." She said. Few seconds later she was back. They all started eating, Mimi expecting the two best friends to make a conversation; Sora expecting Mimi to start a conversation; and Taichi feeling awkward with the silence of the two. He felt like there was so much they wanted to talk and yet they were restraining themselves to do it. Finally he took the lead.

"So, Mimi, how's your supermodel job going?" he asked, putting a small piece of lasagne into his mouth.

"Actually it's going very well. I've been making publicity and they pay, well, a fair amount of money." She chuckled. "But right now, I'm slowing down a bit. Sora has the highlights now." She smiled, pushing the talk towards her friend. The auburn girl, seeing the two of them looking at her, stopped her fork in middle air.

"Well, my Spring collection impressed the big bosses." She simply said. Mimi chuckled again.

"Oh, c'mon, don't be modest." She said, turning to Taichi. "She totally rocked the place with her child collection. She was even invited to go to Paris and work there. Her collection was a tremendous success." She drank a sip of her ice tea. "As it was the Winter collection and the Autumn collection and the Summer collection…basically, this last…two years have been Sora's alone."

Taichi was impressed. He always imagined that Sora was meant for big things, but he had never imagined she could ever reach so high. Of course, the fact that she had moved to New York had surely to do with the fact. In Japan she would have never gotten such a global success. He noticed how she blushed, giving Mimi the look that told her to stop.

"It's not such a great deal." She replied, anxious to change the subject. "How about you, Taichi? How're your international affairs going?"

Taichi cleared his throat. "Great. I travel almost every week to a different place now, so I get to meet the world. Our company it's doing fairly well in business and we plan to have an office here in New York, to add to the California and Texas offices, just here in the States. That's actually the reason I am here." He replied, and then took a sip of his drink.

"That's good. So, how long are you staying?" Mimi asked.

"About a week, I think. If everything works alright." The brown haired man replied.

And so, the conversations started and little by little they looked like the friends they had once been. They talked about work, politics and sports, fashion, movies and clime. Basically they talked about everything, always careful not to approach each other's personal life. However, Sora's mind titled with the question. Something seemed different about Taichi, something seemed out of place. She wanted to ask the question, but she couldn't herself to do it.

They were in the middle of a debate about Agassi and Federero, when a little voice interrupted the talk.

"Mommy, I can't sleep."

Sora's heart almost stopped when she saw her half asleep little girl in her blue pyjama standing in the doorway, her messy brown hair pointing in every way possible and her little hand over her eyes. Mimi bit her lip as she exchanged looks with her friends. Before anyone could say whatever, Ai approached Sora and took her hand.

"Sing me a lullaby, mommy." She asked sweetly. Only when raising her eyes, she noticed the man sitting at the table. She noticed how similar his hair was to hers and smiled. "Hi sir. You have a hair like mine." She pointed out, but before she could say more, Sora gently wrapped her arms around the petit girl's body and carried her to her room.

"Mommy, is he your new boyfriend?" Ai asked, as Sora pushed the covers to cover her. The auburn haired bit her lip and forced a tear back.

"No, honey, he's not. He's just a long time friend that was on the city."

"He has a spiky hair like mine, hasn't he, mommy?" the girl continued. Sora put her hand over Ai's head.

"Yes, he does, but now it's time to sleep." she kissed the girl's cheek and started humming a lullaby to her. Minutes later, Ai was fast asleep. However, Sora took her time to go back to the dining-room, worries filling her mind quickly. It was impossible for him not to have noticed how similar Ai was to him; how old she was and making his own conclusions.

She slowly walked back. Mimi had already tried to smooth the environment. In spite she not knowing who Ai's father was, Sora distrusted that her bright friend had it long figured, after all, Ai was much looked alike him.

She sat down quietly and started eating again, but the food had suddenly no taste. She could feel Taichi's eyes on her.

"You have a daughter." He stated, as he put down his silverwares and cleaned his mouth with his napkin. By his reaction, Sora could tell he was surprised and sort of disappointed. "How old is she?" His voice sounded hurt and the auburn haired was suddenly enraged, fast to change the subject.

"How's Sakura?" the question blurt from her mouth and after she said it, it felt like a great weight had been lifted from upon her. Taichi's head lowered and Sora wondered why. Mimi could see the environment getting heavier and before either of them had the opportunity to say whatever…

"Anyone wants desert?" she asked, collecting the plates.

Sora picked a beer and emptied it in her cup. Then in two sips she emptied the cup. "I do." She replied roughly, the beer rubbing her throat. The velocity in which she emptied the cup made her feel slightly light headed and Mimi felt it was necessary to take the drinks from the table. Nevertheless, the auburn haired put her hands in another beer that she emptied at the same speed as the other. She knew that if she got her hands on the third soon, she would get drunk, but at the time being, that didn't seem to matter.

They ate desert quietly, everyone trying their best not to open their mouths, especially Sora and Taichi, who knew that this could only end in disaster. The entire dinner idea had been a huge mistake. They were like a bomb, expecting to blow up at any time. Two danger solutions that when mixed could only produce an explosive device.

Taichi could see Sora was not drunk yet. It remembered him of that night. Could it be? Could have happen? Life goes around and around in an interrupted circle of changing. Everything would change she had said. It had indeed, changed and then changed again. How many more turns would his life have to bear until he got it right?

He cleaned his mouth. "I think it's time for me to go." He informed, standing. "Dinner was great, Mimi, but I have to wake up early in the morning, so…" Mimi followed his lead and stood as well. "I'll catch a cab."

"No way." Mimi interrupted. "I'll drive you."

"There's no…"

"No buts. I'll drive you back to the hotel." Mimi insisted. The brown haired nodded. Sora stood. She suddenly felt fragile and in need to be hugged. Had it been other times, she had her always trusty friend right by her side. He would hug her while she rested her head on his chest and cried her tears into his shirt, while she wished that they would always be like that, for all eternity, she knew her place would always be in his arms. Had it been other times, and she would have thrown herself onto Taichi's lap and cried. But things had changed. He was married, married…the word always repeated in her head every time she felt down.

Pushing the tears away, she made a strong look, her hand over the table, stabilizing her.

"Goodbye, Sora." She felt his lips on her cheek and for a brief moment, the heat of that tender kiss invaded her. His lips over hers, his hands on her skin…Love. I love you was what she wanted to hear, what she wanted to say, not goodbye, never goodbye. And again that image. He's mine now. Take good care of him. Goodbye.

"Goodbye, Taichi." She whispered into his hear.

She heard the door close, the elevator and then Mimi's car outside. Immediately tears fell down her face. Could she allow that to happen? Allow the love to return? He couldn't take her…but he could take Ai from her. The thought frightened her. Stumbling to the shelve she took the wine he had had in his hands earlier. The wine they had had in her birthday before he announced her he was in love…with Sakura. How ridiculous. She opened the bottle. It tasted just like she remembered. It tasted to pain and sorrow. It tasted to broken heart…

* * *

_Sorry for the delate as always._

_I would like to thank everyone that reviewed the last two chapters and hope you've enjoyed this chapter._

**Sonicmixtfr:**_ my chapters were bigger, but I thought people would often get scared by the size of them and not read my stories because of it, so, from ten pages, I diminished to maximun five pages. Nevertheless, I would like to update sooner, but the fact is that I can't. There's always lots of homework and school work to do and that HAS to come first or I would never be able to post ever again, until I'm out of my parent's, of course._

**digimon-Taiora:** _thank you for reviewing._

**DarkMetalAngel of Destruction:** _it would have been pretty romantic, yes, but unfortunately I couldn't make it happen. So sorry. And yes, bringing them together will be a problem, but I'll work it out. After all, this is TAIORA._

**Anubis24:**_ sorry, but it was on purpose, of coure. I wanted to keep the suspense, make you think what the hell was going to happen. I just wasn't expecting to take so long. Sorry about that._

**Musashibf:**_ all your stories got deleted? That sucks! And you're not posting again? I was still waiting for the end of your story..._

_And people, I'm still looking for an editor, so e-mail me anyone interested._

_Ja ne, minna_ and Happy New Year


	6. Memories

**Unsuspected**

By

Marie Darkholme

**Chapter Six** – Memories

As Mimi drove back to his hotel, Yagami Taichi couldn't bring himself to take an image from his head. The image of Sora, covered in the shadows of the night, her outline lit by the moonlight entering the apartment, her back to him. And then, all the suddenly, another picture appeared in his mind. The image of a little girl with spiked brown hair, and her voice ringed in his ears. Could it be? Could that girl be his? She had the right years; she looked like him. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to believe it. After all, what were the chances of him getting Sora pregnant by fulfilling her request, sleeping with her, once?

He looked outside the car window. A few drops started to fall over the windshield of Mimi's red coupe. It was going to rain, but at the moment that didn't bother Taichi. A part of him wanted to believe that child was his. But the other refused to accept it as truth.

His thoughts were interrupted. The car stopped and the brown haired man noticed they had reached their destination. He prepared to say goodbye to Mimi and return to his hotel room, but the girl stopped him.

"I'm sorry for what happened." She apologized. He smiled.

"Sorry for what?" before she could answer, he continued. "Maybe we can plan something else this weekend." He didn't know what he was quite thinking as the words simply seemed to slip from his mouth. Mimi watched him curious. "Maybe I can meet you girls the day after tomorrow? It'll give Sora the time she needs to…think things through." He continued.

Mimi mirrored him, a sad look on her face. "I don't think that's a good idea." She replied.

"You know that…me and Sakura…we're…divorced, don't you?"

There it was. Mimi had been waiting the entire evening to hear that word. No, she didn't know, but she suspected. Something from Yamato's calls told her something was wrong with him, with Taichi. She didn't know what had happened, but something had made her suspect that he was, indeed, divorced. She smiled, slightly happy to know that, even though a side of her said to her she was being selfish and cruel. "Actually, I didn't, but I had a hunch." She replied, her sad smile fading. "Still, I don't think…"

"I…" He stopped, not quite sure of how to ask the question. The simplest way was to go right to the point. "Who's the fa…?"

Mimi abruptly interrupted him. She wasn't the one he should be asking that. More than anything she wanted Sora and Ai to be happy, and because of that, she wished he was the father like she suspected. Yet, she was not sure if she was right. Ai was six years, freshly made. By the time she was conceived, Taichi would already been married and if not, he was already engaged. Either way, that would mean he had betrayed Sakura. It was complicated to balance the two facts. Besides, it was Sora's decision if she should or not tell him.

"I guess we can meet the day after tomorrow. Maybe you and Sora can get to talk and…work things out." She smiled. "I'll get in contact with you."

Taichi smiled back. They kissed goodbye and the brown haired ran from the car's door to the hotel entrance, a few drops wetting his overcoat. He waved Mimi goodbye as she set off and her red coupe quickly disappeared.

When, ten minutes later Mimi entered her home, she noticed the television of the living-room was on. Putting down her purse over the kitchen's table and taking her coat off, the girl walked into the room. She was expecting to see Sora lying down asleep on the couch. And she was, in fact, lying down, but she wasn't sleeping.

It had been a long time since she had last seen Sora drunk, and it was always an image that she could not suit into the auburn haired. The last time had been on her birthday. Strangely, on the floor was a bottle of the exact same wine the auburn had had that last night. Unfortunately, it wasn't alone. It took a while for Sora to get completely drunk. On her hands, tingling dangerously was a bottle of vodka.

The pink streaked haired girl approached. She slowly tried to remove the bottle from her friend's hands. No good. Sora pulled the bottle to her lips and took another sip. Her eyes were staring at the ceiling, tears falling, a smile plastered on her face. Her auburn hair discomposed fell over the couch and around her. Only then Mimi noticed the girl was wet. Her hair was slightly wet and so were her clothes.

Sora smiled as Mimi took the bottle of vodka from her hands. She picked the wine bottle and stared at it, tracing the outlines with her shaking fingers. She laughed.

"Did you know…" she slurred her voice was deep and shaking. "…that this is the exact same wine… that we had at my birthday party?"

Mimi was sitting on the floor, by Sora's chest, her own head slightly bended, leaning on the auburn's lap.

"The exact same year…can you believe it?" she wasn't waiting for an answer. "He was…so happy." She trailed off, her words staring to make no sense as she talked about the past and the present, the sentences mixed as she reminisced, without order, events, memories, thoughts...

Mimi listened. She knew that her friend needed to talk, to spill the beans. Then it would be the time for her to ask the questions.

"That was fucking great idea…" the auburn haired continued. Mimi knew she was talking about the dinner. "He still has the charm…didn't change a bit…maybe a little more mature…" she chuckled. "Remember when we were kids? No, of course you don't…you didn't know us then…we were always best friends…since childhood…" she stopped, remembering those times. Her mind slowly drifted from the farthest past to the nearest present. She tried to seat, and Mimi sat by her side, pushing her head to her lap and playing with her hair.

"Do you think he knows?" she asked. Mimi started at the ceiling, the television on the background almost inaudible. She realised that maybe Sora wasn't as drunk as she had thought.

"About what?"

"About Ai. Do you think he knows she's his daughter?"

Mimi couldn't help a smile. "You never told me who the father was, remember?"

Sora smiled. "Yeah, but you always distrusted."

"So it is true." Mimi sighed. "Why don't you tell him?"

Sora was slightly chocked. "I can't. He would take her from me. You know how it goes. He has a family; he can provide a mother and a father, the same good schools and medical cares, if not better. The court would give him her custody and I wouldn't bear it. I wouldn't bear losing my daughter."

Silence filled the room as Mimi took in her words. "When did it happen?" she asked, the question burning in her lips. She couldn't see Taichi as a guy who would easily cheat on his fiancée. No, there were other motives, of that she was sure. Otherwise, it was better that Sora wouldn't be with him. He would only end up hurting her, and Ai. She could see Sora's smile in the dark.

"It was two nights before the marriage." She stopped, remembering what she had longed to forget everyday and yet remember every night, when she woke up alone, in the cold bed. That night she hadn't woke up alone. She had stayed awake for the simple pleasure of watching him asleep, his manly features, yet fragile appearance, drifting in some dream she wished it was about her and yet couldn't bring herself to believe it would ever happen. That night, she had caressed his hair softly as he lied by her side, their naked bodies covered with the sheets.

Early in the morning, reluctantly she had stood up, afraid to face him when he awoke. Quietly she had put his clothes over a nearby chair. Then, she had dressed herself and made breakfast for him. He loved chocolate. She wondered if Sakura would know that and make him his favourite breakfast. She had stood on the doorway of his room, watching him, unable to leave. Tip toeing, she reached near him and kissed his lips as he slept, taking in everything there was about him, his sweet smell, his soft tanned skin, the touch of his lips.

On her way out, she had left a note over the table. _Thank you. Love Sora._ It was a silly thing to write, but she couldn't think of another four words that would explain everything so well. Now, she was sure those had been the best words she could have chosen. _Thank you. Ai Sora._

It wasn't a mere accident the name she had chosen so carefully for her unborn baby girl. _Ai_ was the Japanese word for love. And Ai was without a doubt the child of love, of her love for Taichi, and, even if only for one night, of his love for her. _Make love with me._

Mimi smiled, feeling her friend's tears on her lap. She took her in her arms. "You should tell him."

"I can't."

Mimi baled her like a child, the child she felt Sora would like to become at the moment. "He's divorced now and he loves you. There's nothing on your way anymore. You must tell him." However, Sora was already asleep, baled by her own tears.

Taichi conducted himself to his hotel room in a kind of hypnotic way. The lady in the reception was still the same blond girl that had mistaken the key earlier. Fortunately, she was in a better state now and as he reached the attendance counter, the girl immediately handed his card to him, without the brown haired even asking for them. He thanked her, and the girl innocently smiled at him, gesturing a thanks for the earlier happenings.

Reaching the second floor and opening the door to his hotel room, Taichi allowed himself to drift towards the mini-bar. He definitely needed a drink. Slowly, he walked to his bed and without taking his overcoat, allowed his body to fall into the mattresses, as if the gravity had suddenly added pressure on the atmosphere and he could no longer stand, in his hand, a cane of beer.

His arms and legs were sprawled, occupying the most space over the bed. As he took a sip of his beer, he didn't felt like to drink anymore, so, reaching to the night table he put down the cane. The room was engulfed in a pale light, coming from the street lamps outside the window, slightly filtrated by the curtains of dark blue, matching the bed and small couches in the small entrance/living-room.

He began to feel sleepy, as his mind slowly drifted in an ocean of memories. He should have realised there was something wrong the moment he started prolonging his stays at the office, even when he knew there was nothing or little to do. He simply didn't have the will, the desire to go home. He didn't know why, couldn't quite put the finger in the reason, but his life suddenly seemed obsolete. There was nothing for what he was willing to try a little harder. The dinners with Sakura turned common and daily. He started to feel engulfed in a routine that he could not break, and always present, there was a sensation that something was out of place.

Little by little, he was ruining his marriage. It took him a while to realise that. It was necessary for Yamato to interfere in his life for him to know that he and his wife hadn't anything in common anymore, and as much as it hurt, it was his fault and not Sakura's. It was only when he found his wife lying on someone else's arms did he noticed that Sakura was no longer his, and for his stupefaction, he didn't really care.

The divorce had been pacific. There was little to divide, house, car…nothing else. She got the house, he got the car. Living a single turned out not to be as different as when he was married. The big difference was that the time he didn't spend at the office, he would spent it at home, watching some movie for the millionth time and eating frozen food. There was always the feeling of something missing. Little by little, he isolated himself, lost track of his friends. Still, there was this one person that kept crossing his mind, and that person was his lost best friend, the auburn haired girl, Sora. But he never related it to anything besides their lost friendship and his wish to know how she was.

Time went by and it took him a while, that it wasn't friendship the bound that connected him to the auburn haired. It took him a while to realise that it wasn't the wish of knowing how she was doing that kept her in his mind, but the need to have her near him, the desire to touch her again, the long of having her in his arms.

The only thing he knew was that she was living with Mimi in New York. For years he had avoided to travel to New York. But now his company was thinking of establishing an office with a representative in the city and he had been the chosen one. He wasn't sure if he should call it destiny or simply coincidence, but when he was over the clouds, crossing the Pacific Ocean, he decided that it was simply destiny. He was destined to find Sora and correct his mistakes. Never in his entire journey occurred to him that she could have kept with her life.

And then, when he finally met her, even though things were still foggy between the two, he finds out she has a daughter. And, more important than anything, a daughter that he might share without knowing. It wasn't difficult for him to understand the reasons that would take Sora to hide his daughter from him: the fear of losing her, like she had lost him. That was easy to understand.

He tried to keep his thoughts away from the idea. He wasn't sure of his paternity over the child…still, he felt so highly connected to her…and she was so look alike him. Could it be just an amazing coincidence that the father of Sora's daughter would have similar features to him? His mind shouted no. Deep inside, he wanted to believe the child was his. It was destiny again, crossing the lines. One night had made what years of marriage couldn't: bring a child to the world.

He started forgetting everything as his mind slipped to slumber. There was this happy picture filling him, of Sora, him and their daughter playing in the park. He remembered he didn't know her name, but something came up to his mind, the perfect name…_Ai_…Sora…her hair was falling to her shoulders, a small braid on one side of her head, tied by a blue ribbon…his arms on her waist as he twirled her around…and around…and…around…

* * *

_This was suppost not to have more than five chapters but I guess I got carried away...eheheh_

_Anyway, this was a little boring but it explained somethings that happen. I hope to have it finished soon._

_Thanks to reviewers:_

**DarkMetalAngel of Destruction:**_ I didn't know you could get so emotional... --_

**Anubis24:**_ you're always on top of the situation, right? Am I that obvious, because if I am, I'll have to fix it. I don't like being obvious._

_Well, that's it for now, Ja ne..._


	7. Lost

**Unsuspected**

By

Marie Darkholme

**Chapter Seven** – Lost

The morning rose rather dark, drops of rain threatening to fall at any moment. Sora straitened her daughter's raincoat, making sure she was as cover as she could get. The girl smiled in her blue raincoat and boots, her hair combed into two breads, each at each side of her head. She picked her little umbrella with Winnie Pooh and her backpack and prepared to go to school.

Mimi finished combing her hair. She was dressed in a long pink coat with a short skirt and boots. She exited the bathroom, just in time to see Sora stuffing Ai's lunch into her backpack and preparing to leave.

"Are you leaving already?" she asked. The auburn haired nodded, a piece of bread in her mouth. She wore black pants with a beige wool sweater and her own raincoat. The final touch was her black hat, covering half her hair, which was strapped at the right side by a black ribbon and at the end by a beige ribbon.

"Are you coming with us?" Sora asked, eating the rest of her bread and picking her car keys.

"No, I'll meet you there." The pink streaked haired replied.

Ai ran to the door. "I'm going, mommy. Bye Aunt Mimi." and she was already gone before Sora could say whatever. She waved Mimi goodbye and exited, closing the door after her.

She found Ai waiting by the car parked in front of the building, her umbrella opened, receiving the raindrops that had finally started to fall again. The auburn haired smiled as she watched what looked like a memory of herself twirling in the rain. For moments, it was like she was back in the past, watching herself. Unfortunately she was quickly brought to reality by a loud horn.

Opening the car's door, she adjusted Ai in her chair and then climbed to the driver's seat and put on her seatbelt. She looked into the clock displayed in the small monitor in front of the steering wheel. She was minutes late, and arriving at school in time would require some shortcuts and expert driving.

Mimi watched herself in the mirror. Her eyes were swollen from not getting enough sleep the night before. She applied some makeup to cover it up. Still, nothing could cover her worries. They were clearly displayed in her face. Questions dwelled in her mind. Sora had been quite clear about the possibility of telling Taichi the truth, or seeing him again, ever…still, she knew that behind that mask of insensibility before the matter Taichi, Sora herself was dwelling between the fear and the long for him.

She sighed. There was still time. She walked to her room and picked her purse, neglecting the fact that she had left her cell behind. Then, picking her car keys, she too exited to her work, acknowledging Sora was going to be late today.

He twisted in his bed, turning on his other side. The light had entered through the curtains of his hotel room and made contact with his eyes, awakening him from his slumber. The rain was falling harder than the night before, but at the moment, he didn't care. Today there were no more compromises, or the next two days. Everything was set for the offices they would buy in the large business building. It was just wait for the contract and sign it.

Languidly he rose from the bed, still dressed in his previous' night clothes. The night had been complicated to go by, with so many thoughts haunting him. And thought he had been asleep during the entire night, he was still feeling tired. Mainly, because he hadn't been quite asleep, but in a state between awake and asleep.

He slowly took off his clothes as he walked to the bathroom and put the water running, filling the tub. He watched himself in the mirror. He felt old, even thought he knew he wasn't. In fact, he was quite young still. Yet, he couldn't help feeling old and alone. The image of Sora popped into his mind.

He walked into the tub and allowed himself to relax as he felt the warm water covering his body and washing away his thoughts. His hair slowly began to soak with water, and he felt his head heavier. He closed his eyes and leaned his head on the border of the tub, relaxing his muscles. It felt so good to just lay there, thoughtless.

The school was filled with parents dropping their children off. Ai sweetly kissed her goodbye and quickly joined her classmates, talking about their own issues and quietly walking to the classroom. The woman stared at her daughter for a while, her hands on the wheel. At that moment, she tried to convince herself once again that she was making the right decision. The right decision was not to tell Taichi and allow him to have a careless life with Sakura, even if that hurt her. At least, she had her daughter. But if she told him, she was sure she would loose Ai to him, and that she couldn't allow.

She started her way to her work, avoiding some traffic on the main streets by taking shortcuts. Nevertheless, that didn't keep her from being kept in the morning traffic. She slightly cursed herself for having left late. There was an accident directly in front of her and there were no more shortcuts to take, since the building where she worked was one road ahead. But she couldn't just leave the car in the middle of the street, she had her own private place on the subterranean park.

Knowing she was going to be late for the first time in a long time, she turned to her side and retrieved her cell phone from her purse. She looked at it confused. There was something missing…she looked around, trying to find out what had she forgotten and whether it was important or not. Looking to the back seat, she noticed she had forgotten her case. Her large paste was not on the backseat as it should, and she didn't remember bringing it.

Cursing loudly, she quickly made a call to her secretary, explaining she was going to be very late. Unfortunately for her, she still had to wait until she could make a turn to go back home and pick her paste, since she couldn't reverse her march in the middle of the traffic.

Twenty minutes later she was back at her house. She opened the door and immediately spotted the case, quietly over the couch where she had put it, trying not to forget it. She sighed, entered and picked the large paste. She was about to go out the door again when a familiar ring brought her back in. apparently, Mimi had forgot her cell. She put down the case and quickly ran into Mimi's room. As she had thought, the cell phone was over the night table.

Without even thinking, she picked the cell and answered it.

"Hello?" she asked to the other side of the line, walking back to the door. As she waited for an answer, she walked to the door and closed it. Admired that no one answered her, she talked again. "Hello! Anyone there?" she could hear someone breathe on the other side of the line.

"Sora?" a confused voice replied.

The girl took the cell phone from her hear and looked at the small screen. There was no name to the number displayed. "Who is this?" she asked. "Mimi forgot her cell, do you wish to leave a message?"

"It's Taichi here, Sora…"

Taichi waited silently, holding his breathe, waiting for Sora to say something, expecting her to hang off. But she didn't. He noticed by the time it took her to reply that she was surprised.

"Hmm…hi…you wanna talk with Mimi? She's not here, but I can tell her to call you later…"she quickly said.

The brown haired couldn't help a smile. "No, there's no need. Actually, I wanted to talk with you…but since I don't have your number…" he implied.

"Oh…well…what do you want?" he could feel her awkwardness on the other side of the line.

"I wanted to ask you out." He said, closing his eyes and waiting for her reaction.

Sora smiled at his words but at the same time, the sad thought that he was married crossed her mind. Feeling suddenly enraged, she hang off the phone and stuffed it into her purse, trying to quickly forget about the conversation.

However, she couldn't. As she walked into her car, other thoughts crossed her mind and regret stroked her. She should have ended the conversation, asked his reasons, called him names, but never hung off. It surely was weird that he would ask something like that. She had surely misunderstood, or maybe, he just wanted to hang out as friends, talk about the old times…but the fear hit her again. He could want to ask her about Ai…

She tried to clear her mind as she drove but it turned out to be a difficult task to accomplish. All she could think about was Taichi. The brown haired was infiltrating her head and there was nothing she could do about it…or was it?

Mimi had everything planned. She was surprised that Sora had taken the all calling situation so well. When she arrived at work later that morning, she simply handed Mimi the phone, saying Taichi had called. She hadn't said anything else about it, even though by her face, the pink haired could tell the conversation had gone smoothly.

Nevertheless, it was weekend, and like she had promised Taichi, she would manage a way to put the two of them in a room alone again. She had managed to assure that Sora would stay at home while she left to shop during the afternoon of that Saturday. While she left, Taichi would show up and they would eventually have to talk. To finish things off, Ai was in a party of a friend till four o'clock. She had been slightly admired by the absence of an argument. Maybe Sora was already planning on spending the afternoon at home.

At the marked hour, Mimi left, leaving the way for Taichi. He would arrive half an hour after she had left, trying to make the date as casual as possible.

"I'm leaving." She informed. Sora was lying on the couch watching a movie and simply mumbled something that looked like an okay.

Taichi watched himself in the mirror. He was wearing casual clothes: jeans, a shirt and his raincoat. He struggled with his nerves as he walked through the streets, following the instructions Mimi had gave him. Mostly, he didn't need them, since he had always been very good in orienting himself and had already memorized the way to their house. The instructions were more to assure him that he wouldn't ring the wrong bell in the wrong building.

He watched the skies above him, the clouds travelling between the various buildings of New York's city. Lately all the days were rainy, but something in the air seemed to send shivers down his spines as he walked, a strange feeling travelling through him.

Reaching the familiar building, he straightened himself and pushed the door of the entrance, after marking the numbers of the code that opened the door. He didn't want Sora to leave him outside, blocking any chance of face to face contact.

He waited impatiently as the elevator came down and then ascended to the right floor, twisting nervously his fingers. He had cursed himself by the last idea. Asking Sora out like that had certainly not been a very good idea. He distrusted that there was more to her attitude than simply ignoring him.

Taichi stood at the door and took a deep breath before ringing the bell. He waited, his heart pounding uncontrollably in his chest. It wouldn't be long, he was sure, until he could quite down. He was sure that he would solve all the mysteries and problems once he was face to face with Sora again. He would tell her how important she was to him and how he loved her, and she wouldn't be afraid anymore.

A strange feeling travelled through him again as he rang the bell a second time. He waited and still there was no answer. He rang a third and fourth and fifth time, still with no answer. By then, the nerves had turned into preoccupation. Wasn't Sora home or was something happening? Why didn't she open the door?

He tried to listen to any sound coming from inside, but everything was silent. There were no sounds except for the cars outside and his pounding heart. He began to worry. Picking his cell phone he quickly searched Mimi's number. The pink streaked haired was quick to answer, a hint of worry in her voice.

"What is it?"

"Are you sure Sora's home?" he asked. Mimi could feel his voice shaking.

"She said she was going to be home all day. I was going to pick up Ai at half past five, so you could have your time with her." she answered, realising immediately that something was wrong. Suddenly, everything that had happened, things to which she had given little importance started having a bigger dimension. "Are you sure there's no one home?" she asked, praying for her suspicions to be wrong.

"Yes. I've rung like a thousand times and there's no sound coming from the inside."

It took Mimi fifteen minutes to drive all the way back from the mall to her apartment again. There, she found Taichi waiting at the door, his face pale. She passed by him without a word and opened the door. She could feel her throat drying as she opened the door to Sora's room and found some things were gone. Taichi followed her. He gasped.

Mimi opened the closet to find it empty. Ai's books, clothes and some toys were gone as well. The girl felt her legs failing her. Slowly, she walked to the living room and sat on the couch. Her friend was gone…and it was her fault. She sank her head in her hands as tears started rolling down her face.

Taichi was shocked as well, searching desperately for any signs that that would be just a joke. Instead, he found another proof of the veracity of the situation. Sora was really gone. He had lost her. There was a letter over Mimi's bed. He picked it up and started reading it.

_Dear Mimi:_

_I'm sorry to leave like this after so many years. However, I feel obliged to do it. I won't tell you where I'm going, because I know you would tell Taichi and I don't want him to find me or Ai. Don't worry about us, we'll be alright where we're going. _

_We'll send an e-mail when we arrive._

_Love ya, Sora._

Taichi read the letter over and over, still not believing what was happening. He walked to the living-room. There was something missing. How could they have just missed her by half an hour? Where could she have gone in such a short period of time?

"Mimi…" he handed her the letter and waited as she read it.

"It's my entire fault…" the girl murmured. "I should have never brought you back…then Sora wouldn't have left…"

Taichi stared at the ceiling. "Have you no idea to where she's going? She couldn't have gone to far…there's always traffic and I don't think she would stay in the States…" and it was then that he remembered it. The something that was missing, that small memory… _She totally rocked the place with her child collection. She was even invited to go to Paris and work there. Her collection was a tremendous success._

Without thinking twice, he took Mimi's car keys that were just over the table in front of her and exited the building. Mimi only heard her red coupe's tires skidding outside and then the car accelerating.

* * *

_I know, I know, you were expecting some more romance...well, you'll have to wait because I really couldn't just bring them together like that... well, hope you've like the chapter thought. I'll be finished in the next one. Sorry Sonicmixfr..._

_Thanks to all the usual reviewers and new:_

**unknow**

**Sonicmixfr**_ - this was supposed to be a short story and my lust for details brought to eight chapters. I know I could develop it a little better, but the truth is that I prefer it to stay like this. It was supposed to be a simple plot..._

**DarkMetalAngel of Destruction**_ - well, about the Destruction part, I agree, but Angels tend to be emotional don't they? Just joking, I don't want my throat cut...but you were the one who said and I transcribe: "_I want Ai to have her daddy back. sniffs sniffs." _I think that's being emotional, don't you? But, because I don't want you stop reading my stories or kill me, I'll say this: no, you're not emotional, you're very tough_

**Anubis24**_ - yup you got that right._

_So, don't forget that I'm still looking for an editor who can tell me how many mistakes I have for pargraph and actually point them out to me, so I can improve my english.._

_Ja ne..._


	8. Goodbye

**Unsuspected**

By

Marie Darkholme

**Chapter Eight** – Goodbye!

"Are you done, honey?" the auburn haired voice's echoed in the empty bathroom.

"Not yet, mommy." The girl replied, her voice sounding rather annoyed. There was definitely something strange going on. She didn't know why her mother had just packed everything and headed there. And now she was rushing her in the bathroom.

Sora looked to her watch, watching the bigger pointer heading towards four o'clock. She was nervous. Even if she tried hard to keep it from showing, it was almost impossible to hide it. Her voice was accelerated and shaky, she moved way too fast for her own daughter to keep up and she was constantly looking behind, fearing someone would be after her.

Looking at her reflection in the woman's bathroom, she convinced herself that she was doing the right thing, that there was nothing else that she could do except running away from everything and everyone she knew. Of course she wasn't going to a completely new place; still… she closed her eyes and splashed some water on her face.

Ai slowly walked from the small cubicle, straightening her petit skirt. She popped to her mother's side and quickly washed her hands. Sora smiled at her beautiful daughter and had the only confirmation she needed: she would do anything for her daughter, cross the biggest ocean, break contact from the world, forget everything and everyone she knew for her, if that was the only way to stay by her side. The small girl straightened her hair in front of the mirror and smiled at her mother.

"Let's go?" the auburn haired asked, stretching her hand. The youngster took her with a small nod.

They crossed the always busy hallways that led to the check-in counter. The woman was quick to confirm all details about their voyage. They put their suitcases on the rolling carpet and Ai watched amused as they slid through a small opening with black curtains and disappeared. She wondered if it wasn't possible that they would loose their suitcases in such a big place. The lady on the counter with the pretty hat smiled at her.

"Don't worry, your things will go to the same plane as you are." She assured her.

Sora looked once again to the watch on her wrist. Half past four. There was still so much time; over half an hour… she tried to calm herself. Mimi would only see she was missing after trying to pick Ai at half past five, so that gave her enough time to escape without troubles. She sighed. It was all Taichi's fault…

Someone honked behind him and Taichi felt like to come out of the small red coupe and smash the man's head. Couldn't he see that no one was going anywhere? Wherever they turned there was always traffic and to make things worst, an accident had blocked the entire highway. It looked like a large thing by what he could hear in the radio; about seven vehicles had collided due to the rain that had started falling harder than ever. Also, the smog that blocked their view should have contributed to such a mess.

He rested his head against the seat and tried to calm himself. Mimi had left at four and it was now half past four. Check in had to be made an hour and half before boarding, so that left a plane for after five, minimum. Therefore, he still had a clean hour to get to the airport and catch Sora before she would make the biggest mistake in her life. And even if she got into that plane and…he tried to avoid the worst scenario, but if she would take the plane before he could get there, he would follow her and search for her through the entire country if necessary. It would be difficult for her to hide from him.

Some kilometres ahead, the affluence of ambulances made the closest drivers realize the seriousness of the accident. Some of them inhaled exasperated, trying to find a way to outline the accident. But it was an impossible task; they were stuck in front of a blocked highway. Unless someone would clear the road quickly, they had no way to run to.

Ai balanced her legs over the high chair of the cafeteria. In her hand she had an ice-cream. An exception, Sora had clearly explained. "Ice-creams are not to eat in the winter, but because it's hot in here and…well, it's kind of a special day, I'm letting you have it." Before this, the little brown haired choose the ice-cream and was now watching as people walked from one side to the other, people with all different appearances, clothes and suitcases.

There was this old fat lady, with long blond hair tied up on the top of her head in a bun, which was dragging a huge trolley. The woman wore a long dress and was covered in necklaces and rings on her fingers. Ai made a disgusted face as the lady passed by her, her forehead sweating from the effort of pushing the trolley.

Once in a while, young women with blue navy hats and high wheels shoes would pass and greet each other. They had the symbol of the American Airlines plastered on their neat uniforms.

The girl watched as a business man, with a small case sat by her side and quickly engulfed a coffee before almost running out. He had a black suit. Strangely to her, the image that came to her innocent mind was the image of a guest they had had at dinner some days ago. She had fancied him at first sight. He seemed nice and sympathetic. Of course, that being mom's friend he had to be nice. Mommy only took nice friends to her house.

She licked another portion of ice-cream. It suddenly felt like an huge thing to eat and she regretted asking for it. Now she would have to eat it. Fortunately the part left was the most delicious, so she shouldn't have many problems eating it.

Sora drank a sip of her coffee. Looking at her unquiet daughter she was already regretting buying her the ice-cream. She looked into her wrist again. The time seemed to have slow down. She looked at the people around her. Life seemed so simple while all of them where sitting there, chatting…she sighed. There was no turning back now. If she had had any opportunity to ever turn back, it had been when she had known she was pregnant. Now it was simply too late.

Life is simple in fact. People are the ones who complicate it. Like a Portuguese poet once said, it hurts to think and it can only bring unhappiness. Sora reflected over the theme. It was a fact the rationalizing things had mostly brought her problems, especially when she tried to rationalize her feelings. Maybe if she had thought less and acted more she wouldn't be in that airport right now…she would be at her house, with her lovely daughter in one arm, and her loving husband on the other. But life could never get that simple for her now…she had to face it: she had fucked up…

Taichi sighed. As far as he knew, he had driven two metres in the last half an hour and he was getting out of time. It had been a while…quite a while since he had last been in the city, but he knew he would never make it in time if they kept moving so slow. Nevertheless, there wasn't much he could do. He could only hope that the police and firemen would clear the streets pretty soon or start running like hell, leaving Mimi's car abandoned in the middle of the highway.

He rejected the second and kept with the first, begging that they would hurry. He turned on the radio, trying to quite himself. However, the music that turned up, only brought him more sadness and the feeling of helpless while the woman he loved ran away and he was stuck in the middle of traffic. The lyrics echoed through his mind…

_Lost in the darkness, hoping for a sign._

_Instead there is only silence,_

_Can't you hear my screams?_

_Never stop hoping,_

_Need to know where you are,_

_But one thing is for sure,_

_You're always in my heart._

_I'll find you somewhere._

_I'll keep on trying until my dying day._

_I just need to know whatever has happened,_

_The truth will free my soul._

_Lost in the darkness, try to find your way home._

_I want to embrace you and never let you go._

_Almost hope you're in Heaven, so no one can hurt your soul_

_Living in agony cause I just do not know_

_Where you are…_

The auburn haired listened to the music playing on the radio, echoing through the cafeteria. She suppressed her sadness. She had known where he was all the time. He had always been in her heart, even when she tried to rip it apart, he had remained there. He was never lost. Taichi was always in her thoughts, in her actions, in her love.

She paid for her coffee and Ai's ice-cream. The little brown haired followed her mother, thinking once again she shouldn't have had that ice-cream. She could feel it around in her tummy while she walked.

The number and name of the flight appeared on the boarding list, and Sora started her way through the long corridors that led to their airplane's boarding room, crossing the check points where Ai would find amusing how she had to put everything she carried on the rolling carpet, then passing through a doorframe that would sometimes beep when she forgot to put her watch on the bandage.

He had driven a few more metres, but mostly, he was still in the same place, and in the watch displayed on the screen of the car, he could see the time rushing by.

Cursing his damn luck, he opened the door, exited the car and slammed the door shut. It was heard a beep as he closed the doors and started running trough the traffic. Behind him, he could hear some drivers honking and complaining that he had left his car stopped in the middle of the driveway, but at the moment, he couldn't care less. He wasn't sure how long it would take him to get to the airport on foot, but he wasn't planning on giving up.

The last gym practises were doing some effect on him. Still, after running for fifteen minutes without a stop his breath was starting to fail him. The cold air blocked his airways, freezing his nose and throat. The air coming into his lungs was no longer warmed up and he was starting to feel slightly dizzy from the lack of oxygen. Nevertheless, he kept running.

The loud sounds of the ambulances made him realise he was getting closer to the source of the problem. It was indeed a great accident, involving several cars. Now he was sure he had made the right choice leaving the car behind. As far as he knew, he could have been stuck there for the next two hours.

He crossed the accident place, catching the attention of some paramedics and policemen, while he half walked half run, completely running out of breath through the scene. Once he was on the other side, the road was as clear as a Summer sky. He reached for his cell.

"Hello!" he called out. "I would like a cab to meet me as fast as possible avoiding the highway." He quickly gave the name of the street he was on.

Seven minutes later, a cab made a lousy turn and stopped inches from his feet. In other time, he would have refused to travel with the individual but he didn't have time to waste and so, he quickly climbed into the taxi. "To the airport." He told the man driving.

The driver was a black man with a funny hair and big mouth. It was impossible for Taichi to keep the man quiet as he just kept on and on about all the issues he could think off. First he talked about politics and how he wished Bush had lost the elections; then he went on how the Chicago Bulls simply weren't the same without Michael "Air" Jordan; from the weather to environment and, noticing his passenger was Asian, to what he really thought about Japan. The atomic bomb on Nagasaki and Hiroshima really weren't the events that led to the end of the war, he explained.

"The war was already over. The atomic bombs were just the way of this…this Occident people trying to make a stand. _We're bigger and have more guns than you do._ And they call us savage. But tell me, how is like to live in Japan? I'm from Africa, an immigrant, ya know?..."

Taichi simply ignored the man. Fortunately, the African was a supreme knower of the streets and avoided every line he found, choosing shortcuts and doing dangerous maneuvers at high speed. For two or three times, Taichi wondered if was ever going to arrive alive to the airport.

Twenty minutes later, the brown haired was running through the airport rotating doors. He quickly checked the flights list. There was only a plane, directly to Paris…and it was boarding, which meant that it would soon departure, taking his Sora away with it.

Knowing he wouldn't go pass the check points without a ticket, he quickly brought a ticket in a nearby counter to a flight to somewhere in Europe, boarding some rooms away from the New York/Paris flight. He made the check-in, rushing the girl on the counter. The girl eyed him annoyed as she handed his ticked back to him, but the brown haired didn't even see, nor did he care. All he knew was that Sora's flight was ready to departure.

The long corridors that led to the boarding rooms had never in his entire life seemed so big as then. He tried to keep his pace steady and quick, but his vision was blurting, his throat hurting him, due to the difference in temperatures from the outside and the inside. He eventually had to stop, deciding that it was best to get there seconds later than not to get there at all.

He finally reached the final corridors, the numbers of the boarding rooms filling his eyes, spreading in front of him. For his unhappiness, Sora's boarding room was almost the last one, which meant that was at the end of the corridor. Taking in the last strengths he had, he run down the corridor.

Exhausted, he leaned against the door to the room and opened it.

Empty.

No, it couldn't be empty. He hadn't heard…but of course, he had been so engulfed into getting to the room that he had completely lost track with reality. Of course he hadn't heard the last call being made. He slowly walked into the room, watching the empty place, where an airplane had been just seconds earlier through the window. He sighed as he covered his face with his hands. He had been late…like always. He silently cursed the damn driver who had caused the accident. He should burn in hell for that.

A part of him tried to calm him down; telling him it was okay, that he could always go the Paris. It would be difficult for a famous stylist like Sora go unnoticed in Paris. But the other part told him that once again he had lost her. Of course he could go to Paris, but when he finally finds her, who knows, maybe she has met some French and gotten married. He was still surprised at how she could have stayed single. The only reply that occur him was the fact that she was still in love with him.

He sank his face in his arms.

"I'm sorry mommy…" a little girl's voice cried. "I really had to go."

Taichi heard the footsteps slow down as they got nearer. The door opened, but he didn't look up.

"Oh…we've lost it, mommy. I'm so sorry…I promise I won't eat more ice-scream in the winter."

Taichi heard the footsteps stopping and then a pair of feet touching the ground. Then little steps running towards him. He raised his head and watched as a little brown haired girl walked passed him and glued her small hands to the window.

"Look, mommy, there it goes our plane." She said with a hint of sadness. But there was no reply.

Sora put a hand over her mouth. She couldn't speak. She couldn't move. She was incapable of reacting in any way. She could see Taichi standing, a bright in his eyes as he walked towards her. He stopped.

"Ai…honey…" her voice trembled. The girl turned and seeing the man she had been thinking about earlier, her face light up in joy.

"Hello, mister." She extended her small hand to him. Taichi stooped down to her level and shook her hand.

"Hello Ai." He said with a smile. The girl seemed very happy with his presence and he contained himself, trying not to take her in his arms and caress her, feel the daughter he knew to be his.

"I didn't know you were going on the plane too, mommy's friend. But you lost it too." She spoke, her voice, excited with the events. "But mommy says it's okay because we can get another one in two couples of hours."

"Ai, honey, go see the planes, leaving. See how many you can count, okay?" Sora interrupted, gaining her voice back. Ai quickly walked to the window.

"One…" she exclaimed happily as a plane rose in the air.

"I…you..what…?" her confused words where interrupted as Taichi pushed her towards him and kissed her. Sora pulled away.

"You can't do that." she complained, her voice sounding more sad than hurt. He smiled, taking her hands on his.

"I'm not married anymore, Sora." He told her. The girl couldn't hide a blink in her eyes. Still, there were many things…

He interrupted her. "I don't want to think about anything else except the fact that I love you." He whispered. "I love, and I want to stay with you." Her lips moved but he gave her no time to say a word. "I love you and Ai, both. I know she's my daughter, you can't hide it from me anymore."

"But…everything…aren't you angry? Aren't you going to take her away from me?" Sora asked; her voice shaking as she watched her small treasure by the window.

"Four…"

"Why would I, if I want both her and her mother. I won't content with one." He smiled. For the first time, Sora smiled as well, and a tear escaped her eyes. There were things she wanted to say, to explain…so many things…but at that moment, there were no words that she could say.

Their kiss was different from that night, she could tell. It was still tender and soft, but this time it was also passionate. She accepted and retributed, feeling Taichi's warm embrace closing around her.

Yes, things had changed…but they had changed so many times. For the first time in her life, Sora realised that change wasn't always bad, didn't always meant suffering and sadness. Changes could be good. This was certainly a good change. Life is a rolling wheel that sometimes happens to beat on a rock, tripping and turning around. But that doesn't mean the turn was bad. It's just a different way to keep living.

They opened their eyes to find a six years old girl staring wide eyed at them. She put her hands over her waist.

"Mommy, you lied to me." She said slightly annoyed. "You said this friend wasn't a boyfriend."

The two lovers smiled, stooping down to her side.

"No, technically I didn't lie, because he's only my boyfriend starting now." Sora smiled. The little girl raised an eyebrow.

"Hello, mommy's boyfriend." She greeted with a distrusted smile. Taichi couldn't hold himself any longer and took her in his arms. The girl was surprised, but as if a child could distinguish his progenitors, she hugged back, feeling that she would have someone to call daddy from now on. And she smiled, happy to have a family at last.

* * *

_Well, this is the end folks. It wasn't the ending I was expecting, but well, it turned out like this. I know you wnated more romance, but how much romance can I get in a boarding room at an airport. Hope you've enjoyed nevertheless. So just tell me something._

_By the way. I've found an editor...well, actually he found me. Thanks _**Musashibf**_, I'll send a chapter right away._

_Thanks to all reviewers._

**Anubis24**_ - my chapters tend to be sad, but I hope you've enjoyed the end. I feel like I could have done better._

**Sonicmixfr**_ - you can bet I'll write more, I just don't know when...ehehe. Anyway, thanks for reviewing._

**DarkMetalAngel of Destruction**_ - thanks a lot for the website. Pretty cool. Now you have the family together. Happy? I hope so, because I don't feel like to die just yet._


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